Alwar boy brings Husain to life

We had informed you about Rajasthan boy Jatin Sharma essaying the role of the renowned painter MF Husain in a biopic, being made by Barkha Roy. After keeping the actor’s look under wraps for months, the producer has finally agreed to reveal a glimpse of Jatin as Husain, through TOI. Though the actor is seen dressed as an elderly Husain for Barkha’s ambitions venture 'My Friend Hussain', the actor is all of 23 years in real life.
Jatin hails from Alwar in Rajasthan and has been actively involved in theatre. After auditioning almost a hundred people for over a year, Barkha gave up all her hopes of finding a suitable face for the character, until she found Jatin. “It was a tough task, so much so that I had lost all hopes of getting the right lead for my film. But when I saw him, it was unbelievable,” says Barkha.
Recalling an incident, Barkha, who also happens to be yesteryear actress Reena Roy’s sister, states, “We had to shoot a long sequence in the crowded streets of Bhindi Bazaar, Mumbai, and the moment we got Jatin out on the streets, it was mayhem. Thousands of people on the streets got befuddled wondering how Husain could be alive? They started following Jatin till he got mobbed. We had to ultimately call off the shoot for that day.”
Although the film has been Barkha’s pet project, she owes the completion of the film to director Bhavna Shrestha, who was the creative head at Shah Rukh Khan’s production house for almost 10 years. Barkha adds, “She is extremely talented and has been my friend for a long time. It was during a random chat that we decided to make a film on Husain sahab. Whenever she would come to my house she would notice his paintings all over. The moment I expressed my desire to work on a film, she offered to join me.”