I won’t stand like a statue, said Praveen Kumar aka Bheem of Mahabharat when he was asked to get his dialogues dubbed

Praveen Kumar Sobti, who played the role of Bheem in BR Chopra’s Mahabharat, is a four time Asian Games medallist (2 gold, 1 silver & 1 bronze) and also represented India in two Olympics. But getting the role of Bheem was not an easy one. The sportsman-turned-actor had some voice issues which he faced after getting selected for the role. In a chat with Times of India, the actor shared his story. (As told to Amit Kumar of Times of India, Sports)

“One fine day, one of my close friends called me and said BR Chopra sir is going to produce Mahabharat and has got all the characters for the show, but is struggling to find Bheem. He said you have a good physique and acting experience and should try out. I made an appointment and went to meet BR Chopra sir. I met him and he signed me immediately.”

“I had the physique and build to play the role of Bheem but the voice was the major problem.”

“After delivering a few dialogues for a couple of days, the crew came and said they will get the dubbing done by someone else. I got angry and said, ‘I am not a statue. I will not do the role without the dialogues. I requested them to give me a week’s time.”

“Chopra sir said take a week and we will take a final decision then. I had one week’s time in hand. I bought a 'Mahabharat granth' and started practising the lines loudly in my house. There were some difficult words too. I used to write those on a piece of paper and repeat those again and again loudly. After one week, I went to the sets of Mahabharat and impressed everyone.”

“Children remember me as Bheem. Whenever I go out, they say ‘woh dekho, Bheem uncle, Bheem uncle’. I love it when they call me that, Sobti said with a laugh. “People still bring their children to my place to seek my blessings. It is because of Mahabharat.”

The actor has done over 50 movies, including the 1987 Amitabh Bachchan blockbuster 'Shahenshah'. He would mostly play a goon or a henchman but it was Bheem’s role that gave him fame.

“I always believed in destiny. It is destiny for me. I am really thankful to God for all this. I am thankful to BR Chopra sir as well. People used to watch in that era, but I am so happy that people are still watching Mahabharat. Mahabharat has more TRP than Ramayan and Shri Krishna today. All the characters have done an amazing job. BR sir has given everyone an identity," Sobti said.