Superstars delve into rare afflictions

MUMBAI: HINI cases may continue to swell across the country, but our movies are obsessing over esoteric, one-in-a-million kind
of afflictions.

According to trade sources, after Aamir Khan's 2007 hit release Taare Zameen Par (TZP), which deals with a common and treatable learning disability of dyslexia, A-list Bollywood film-makers have discovered the genre of medical conditions. In fact, they are going much further and working on scripts that revolve around only the rarest of rare afflictions.

A trade source says, "Not only did TZP win accolades, it also made good money at the box office, leaving the field open for other film makers to happily emulate.''

Evidently, they are more than emulating. Amitabh Bachchan, for instance, is playing a character diagonised with progeria (also known as HutchinsonGilford Progeria Syndrome), an extremely rare genetic condition wherein symptoms resembling aspects of ageing are manifested at an early age.

In R Balki's Paa, Bachchan plays a teenager (around 13 years old, it is rumoured) who actually looks 25-odd years older than himself because of his serious affliction.

Then, Shah Rukh Khan has autism in Karan Johar's My Name is Khan. Autism is a brain development disorder that is usually characterised by impaired social interaction and communication as well as restricted and repetitive behaviour.

SRK admits that it is a very challenging role to play, and film maker Karan Johar says that for both Khan and himself, this film is one of the most difficult roles in the superstar's career. Johar has touched on a form of autism, where his protagonist shows signs of eccentricites.

And those who have seen sneak previews of the film say SRK has never done anything even quite close to this in his entire career.

Hrithik Roshan, on the other hand, plays a paraplegic in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Guzaarish. Not only has Hrithik been practising for weeks on end, on a wheelchair, he has been doing thorough research on the disorder to look convincing.

Says a source close to the actor, Hrithik is taking his role very seriously and has been reading up on paraplegia and watching videos to understand and study their mannerisms and behaviour.

On account of his frequent interactions with persons suffering from the disorder, the sensitive actor has decided to work for the cause of those incapacitated due to paraplegia.

Source: TimesofIndia