During the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war, Sam Mankeshaw was the chief of the army staff...
Digital Desk: Kangana Ranaut revealed another key character from her upcoming film 'Emergency' on Thursday. In the political drama, Ranaut will play the role of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, while model-actor Milind Soman will play the role of war hero Sam Manekshaw.
During the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war, Sam Mankeshaw was the chief of the army staff. He was also the first army officer to be promoted to the prestigious rank of field marshal. A film based on his life is in development, with Vicky Kaushal playing the lead role.
"Presenting the dynamic @milindrunning as #SamManekshaw, the man instrumental for saving India’s frontiers during the Indo-Pak war and whose service was as distinguished as his honesty; a charmer, a war hero and a visionary leader in #Emergency," wrote Kangana on her social media as she revealed Milind’s look as the officer.
Explaining why Milind was chosen to play the role, Kangana said in a statement,"Sam Manekshaw was the hero of the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971. Milind Soman's commanding screen presence and talent were ideal for the type of actor we wanted to play this critical role. Sam Manekshaw had a clear vision, was a strong-willed individual, and his significance in the film is enormous. The film depicts how two strong-willed individuals, Mrs Gandhi and Sam Maneskshaw, collaborated to fight the war against Pakistan. This period of history fascinates me because it digs deeper into how things worked and turned out for them. We are fortunate that Milind Sir will take on this role. I hope this film does justice to his enormous talent and great screen presence."
Meanwhile, Milind said that he was elated to collaborate with Kangana, "I am delighted to be working with Kangana. I've enjoyed a lot of her work, particularly Queen and Tanu Weds Manu. I'm happy to be working under her supervision. Playing Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw is both an honour and a huge responsibility."
The film also stars Anupam Kher as Jayaprakash Narayan and Shreyas Talpade as Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Mahima Choudhary will play Pupul Jayakar.
