Aamir Khan’s Lagaan stands out as one of the most celebrated films in Hindi cinema. While Aamir took on the lead role in the film, the meticulously crafted supporting characters played a crucial role in narrating the story of the oppressed villagers during the British Raj. In a recent interview, Yashpal Sharma, who essayed the character of Lakha in Lagaan, shared his thoughts on the film and how he found his character better than Aamir’s lead role. He also disclosed the remuneration he received for his role in the film.
Speaking about how he bagged the role of Lakha, Yashpal told Rajshri Unplugged, “I got Lakha’s role in Lagaan, and I was salivating at the thought of it because I found Lakha’s role the best in the film. In fact, I loved Lakha’s role more than Aamir Khan’s lead role because it had a lot of variations. Negative, positive, love angle, jealousy – he had all those emotions. I was told that I would have to audition for the role and I readily agreed. Right after giving the audition at Aamir Khan’s house in Mumbai, I got a text saying ‘You are selected for the role.’ To star in Lakha’s role with Aamir Khan was a big thing for me. I was so happy.”
He also revealed details about his compensation for the film and provided insights into the negotiation process with producer Reena Dutta. He said, “Next day, I went to meet Aamir’s then-wife Reena Khan, she was one of the producers of the film. I was thinking about how much should I quote for the film the whole way. I came from a poor background, but I said to myself ‘don’t agree for less than one lakh.’ But at the same time, I was scared that they might take somebody else, so I thought maybe I should ask for Rs 50,000. I was in such a condition that I would have taken up the job even if they would have given me Rs 20,000. However, when I reached the office of Reena ji, she told me that they don’t have much budget and that they are giving Rs 1.5 lakh to everybody and I said, ‘No madam, at least you should give Rs 2 lakh.” I didn’t know what happened in that moment. She agreed and I signed the contract. Later, I was thinking if I would have asked for Rs 5-10 lakh, she would have agreed.”
Set against the backdrop of the British Raj in the 1800s, Lagaan portrays the story of Indian villagers rebelling against high taxes. The film, written and directed by Ashutosh Gowariker, received widespread acclaim, numerous awards, and an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.
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