Freedom of choice

Actor Sidhant Gupta, who impressed the audience with his work in the streaming series Jubilee, is gearing up to essay the role of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in the upcoming OTT series Freedom at Midnight.

Nikkhil Advani, the director and showrunner of Freedom at Midnight, has now shared what led to Sidhant’s casting for the role. Freedom at Midnight is a political thriller series, and is set against the backdrop of India’s struggle for Independence, the series intricately weaves together pivotal events and eminent personalities who shaped the nation’s history.

Nikkhil shared as to what led to Sidhant being chosen for the iconic role. He said, “Casting for this project was no easy feat, it was critical to find actors who could truly embody these iconic leaders. Kavish, our casting director, was brilliant in identifying the right talent, and the prosthetics done by Jagdish Dada, team, made sure the transformations were seamless.”

He added, “Nehru’s character was the last to be cast for the show. We needed someone who could truly embody Pandit Nehru, and while Sidhant’s talent was undeniable, it was his striking resemblance, especially his nose, to Nehru ji that sealed the deal”. The series also stars Chirag Vohra, Rajendra Chawla, Arif Zakaria, Ira Dubey, Malishka Mendonsa, Rajesh Kumar, KC Shankar, Luke McGibney, Cordelia Bugeja, Alistair Finlay, Andrew Cullum and Richard Teverson in pivotal roles.

Freedom at Midnight is based on the eponymous book by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins. The series delves into the motivations, conflicts, and sacrifices of key figures like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Produced by Emmay Entertainment in association with StudioNext and Sony LIV, the series is set to stream on Sony LIV in November. —IANS