Then
came the biggest surprise of all. The 6'2", 98 kg [never
say diet] Boman being cast as The Mahatma Gandhi in Feroze Khan's
'Mahatma Vs Gandhi. When he was informed of it he first
thought it was a cruel joke.
It
was for real, so he laughed for a few minutes and 8 hours after
he realized that Feroze Khan was serious, Boman went on a diet.
Two months to the hour of opening night he had shed 18 kgs
to play the man.
Boman's
first performance as Gandhi was in Durban. 22 performances
in South Africa, unprecedented audience and critical acclaim
were the reason enough for the play to return to South Africa
in 1999 Jan. Feroze Khan who also acted in the play, Jayati
Bhatia who played Kasturba and Boman were the toast of Durban.
It
was a proud moment for Indian theatre with the play being described
as on of the finest to be staged in that country.
|