Manoj Muntashir on Saif Ali Khan's 'humane Raavan' remark: "He was misunderstood"

Dialogue writer and lyricist Manoj Muntashir clarified that actor Saif Ali Khan's comments recently on "humanising Raavan" were "misunderstood". In an interview with a leading daily, Muntashir said that the film Adipurush will not showcase Raavan as "an all-black figure."

Muntashir told Mid-Day that there is nothing "offensive" in the film and Saif Ali Khan was "misunderstood" for his comments on Lankesh. Moreover, Manoj revealed that Raavan will be seen in all "his shades" — a flamboyant king — both cruel and sadistic. Saif Ali Khan's remarks over presenting a "humane" side to the mythological character Raavan in the upcoming film Adipurush created a stir on social media in December and the actor later issued an apology for his comments saying it was never his intention to hurt people's sentiments.

"Saif is a thinking actor and asks questions to understand his role better. He gets into the skin of the character," Muntashir said in the interview.

Backed by T-Series, Adipurish is an on-screen adaptation of the epic Ramayana which features Baahubali star Prabhas as Lord Ram and Khan as the antagonist Lankesh. The film will be directed by Om Raut of Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior fame.

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Saif's apology

"I''ve been made aware that one of my statements during an interview has caused a controversy and hurt people''s sentiments. This was never my intention or meant that way. I would like to sincerely apologise to everybody and withdraw my statement," Khan, 50, said in a statement. The Sacred Games star further said the film will be a celebration of "the victory of good over evil".

"Lord Ram has always been the symbol of righteousness and heroism for me. Adipurush is about celebrating the victory of good over evil and the entire team is working together to present the epic without any distortions," he added.

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To be shot in Hindi and Telugu, Adipurush will be dubbed in Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, and several other languages. The film is currently in the pre-production stage and is expected to go on floors in 2021. It is slated to be released on August 11, 2022.

(With PTI inputs)