As ‘Udta Punjab’ completes a decade since its release, the director Abhishek Chaubey looked back at the making of the famous drama and revealed that Shahid Kapoor was the first actor to be cast. In fact, according to the filmmaker, the actor opted for the project when the film was still looking for producers.Reflecting on the early days of development, Abhishek Chaubey shared that Shahid immediately connected with the world of the story and was deeply involved in shaping his character, Tommy Singh, long before the cameras started rolling.
Shahid Kapoor contributed to the look of the character
Speaking to SCREEN, the director revealed that Shahid played an active role in designing various aspects of the eccentric rock star’s look. Although the script already required the character to have a haircut, the idea to wear long hair before this transformation came directly from the actor.“Shahid was the first to join the film, before there was even a producer. Shahid himself is very interested in that world. He played a big role in building that character. It was always written in the script that he would cut his hair.” Abhishek added, “But before that it was her idea to have long hair. The wig is painful to wear on her head, but that was her idea.”One of the most demanding aspects of the role was believably portraying a man struggling with substance abuse. Chaubey explained that he spent considerable time researching addiction and regularly discussed the character’s mental state with Shahid.“I did a lot of research on substance abuse, so I could describe what happens to him in a very prosaic way. He had to be constant,” said the filmmaker. According to him, acting required a delicate balance. While a small act can often be easier to control, playing a character as volatile and unpredictable as Tommy Singh ran the risk of crossing over into excess.Chaubey recalled that conversations about the intensity of the performance became a daily routine on set. The team constantly evaluated how far they could push the character without coming across as artificial. “I was really worried that the pitch might go wrong. It’s easy to go in and play subtle because you’re not doing much. But when you’re doing so much, if even a note goes back and forth, your performance is a toss up. So it was a daily discussion on the set, if we’re going to overdo it, then how much we’re going to overdo it, so it doesn’t become fake.”The director credited Shahid’s acting instincts with helping him maintain this balance, noting that the actor often brought emotional depth to scenes without requiring overt direction.
A scene from ‘Udta Punjab’ left a lasting impression
Among the many moments that stood out during filming, Chaubey singled out a sequence before a concert where Tommy is reluctant to play and is drugged by his cousin.“Shahid is a very good actor, so he would be very vulnerable without me saying it. I remember there’s a scene before the concert where he doesn’t want to act, but he’s done, and his cousin pulls out some drugs and puts them in his hand.”Describing the scene further, the filmmaker said, “He looks at the drug for a long time and then looks at his cousin in a way that says, ‘I shouldn’t have done it.’ He’s going to destroy me.” He got that out with just one statement.”
The physical transformation behind Tommy Singh
What made Shahid’s portrayal even more remarkable, according to Chaubey, was that the actor had no personal experience with substance abuse. However, he immersed himself fully in the role, even changing his lifestyle during the filming.The filmmaker revealed that he counseled Shahid on how addiction often affects a person’s body and eating habits. Determined to achieve authenticity, the actor reportedly followed a restrictive diet and relied heavily on black coffee while filming.“…I also told him that when you’re dealing with drug addiction, nutrition is not your priority. So you don’t eat. But because he’s young, his body becomes a certain way. You become very thin, pichka hua. So he went on a kind of diet and didn’t eat anything on set. And his body was putting your heart rate black, especially when you were taking your heart rate. Empty stomach,” recalled the director.Ten years later, Shahid Kapoor’s portrayal of Tommy Singh in ‘Udta Punjab’ continues to be regarded as one of the most feared and transformative roles of his career.
