He said he learnt from the experience and corrected his course in his Telugu debut 'Saindhav', headlined by Venkatesh.
Published Jul 18, 2024 | 1:54 PM ⚊ Updated Jul 18, 2024 | 1:54 PM
Nawazuddin Siddiqui gets candid about doing 'Petta'. (Instagram)
In the latest interview, Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has expressed guilt about starring in Petta (2019). He mentioned that while he doesn’t care about money, he works in South Indian films because of the high pay.
Rajinikanth’s action drama Petta, directed by Karthik Subbaraj, is available on Netflix. Released alongside Ajith’s Viswasam (2019), the film was celebrated for Rajinikanth’s character and succeeded at the box office.
Produced by Sun Pictures, Petta also features Vijay Sethupathi, Trisha, Simran, Megha Akash, and Sasikumar, with music by Anirudh Ravichander.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui admitted to “cheating” in his South Indian film performances due to a lack of control over his characters and needing someone to explain his lines before filming. He said he participates because of the “lucrative pay“.
When the Bollywood actor was asked about working in South Indian films with stars like Rajinikanth and Venkatesh (in the 2024 film Saindhav), he admitted to feeling a “lack of control” in his South Indian film performances.
“In films like Raman Raghav 2.0 (2016), I command my emotions, thoughts, and soul. But in South films, I’m uncertain. Despite the high pay, I feel guilty because I don’t fully understand what I’m doing,” he explained.
Nawazuddin in ‘Petta’ (left); dubbing his lines for ‘Saindhav’. (X)
Nawazuddin Siddiqui said the audience wouldn’t notice but he does. “It’s like doing an ad—I have no emotion for the product, just the payment.”
Despite this, he insisted in the same interview that he became an actor for the love of the craft, not the money. “We have a sugar factory in our village, Budhana. I could’ve made just as much money if I had stayed there,” he said, explaining why he no longer does theatre.
He lost the desire for stage performance after struggling to succeed in movies and noted that theatre would prevent him from taking other jobs.
In an earlier interview, Nawazuddin Siddiqui revealed that after the Petta shoot, he felt like he had fooled everyone by just lip-syncing to prompts. “I didn’t understand many words and felt ashamed despite an efficient performance. When you get paid for it, you start to wonder, ‘Am I committing fraud?'”
The Bollywood actor also admitted that he learned from his Petta experience and corrected course in his Telugu debut Saindhav. “I dubbed my lines and understood every dialogue’s meaning and purpose, so I felt less guilty,” he added.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui was recently seen in the ZEE5 film Rautu Ka Raaz (2024).
(Edited by Y Krishna Jyothi)
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