Emraan Hashmi: I figured that when you are working with Mr Bachchan you need to be more than prepped

Emraan Hashmi is at the cusp of change. The actor has been consciously and cautiously picking roles over the last few years to break away from his ‘serial kisser’ image. Films like

Baadshaho

, Why Cheat India and his upcoming films like

Harami

,

Chehre

and

Mumbai Saga

present him in characters that don’t rely on the kissing trope. While he has teamed up with John Abraham for Mumbai Saga, he will be seen with Amitabh Bachchan in Chehre.

Talking about teaming up with his matinee idol Amitabh Bachchan, Emraan said, “Yes, the fanboy in me did come into play when I was working with Mr Bachchan. The first time I met him, we were at his residence for a script discussion and some work on the formal announcement of the film. He instantly put me at ease. He is such a committed actor. You wouldn’t expect someone of his stature to do the things he does - he came for all the readings which just speaks of his level of commitment. He has been around for over four decades and his style of work is inspiring. His level of commitment is inspiring, too.”

When asked about his first day of shoot with Bachchan Sr, Emraan recalled the day and said, “On the first day of shoot, I just wanted to get past the first few scenes and dialogues. For me as an actor, getting through the first scene is really important. Here I was, working with someone I have been in awe of for as long as I can remember. Thankfully, I didn’t blank out and it went off smoothly. The film has a lot of dialogue -- interesting conversational film. In this course of this film, I figured that when you are working with Mr Bachchan you need to be more than prepped. Thankfully, I did get some time to prepare myself for a film that largely plays out in a locked house where the characters chat.”