Agneepath Revisited In Shootout At Wadala

When Anil Kapoor had played Amitabh Bachchan‘s son in Shakti over three decades back, he wouldn’t have imagined that one day he would be re-enacting a scene similar to that of his on-screen idol. This chance recently came his way for Shootout At Wadala, the shooting of which is currently on, where he brought to life one of the iconic scenes from Big B starrer Agneepath.

“Everyone remembers that scene from ‘Agneepath’ where Amitabh Bachchan entered a community infested slum in (then) Bombay and rescued his sister. The scene involved thousands of Tamilians creating a ‘chakravyuh’ of sorts without allowing any non-community person to step in. Now something similar was recreated for ‘Shootout At Wadala’ where Anil Kapoor penetrates a Muslim dominated area in hunt for the notorious Pathan gang. It was a deja vu of sorts for director Sanjay Gupta who idolises Late Mukul S. Anand. He wanted to create a similar magic since his film too is set in the 70s Bombay”, informs a source.

What made the scene special though was the fact that Sanjay and his crew decided to bring reality into motion and hence shot it in real location (Behram Baug). Since the place still maintains similar authenticity as that of the era in which the film is set, it worked for all involved.

“However it was a daunting task for entire cast and crew since celebrities can’t be expected to walk in and walk out at ease and one has to be very careful. This time around, it was the turn of our team to form a ‘chakravyuh’ so that entry and exit of Anil Kapoor was safe and sound”, says one of the ADs on the film.

In fact there was slight apprehension on part of Anil Kapoor as he wanted to be doubly sure about shooting in this area. However when Sanjay explained that the scene was somewhat reminiscent of the iconic scene from Agneepath, he was game for it.

“In fact Anil also quipped that in his over three decades of film career, it is surprising that he never shot in this part of Mumbai”, informs Sanjay Gupta, “He was at his energetic best once he was on the location. He also adjusted into this setting despite the fact that his vanity van had to be parked way outside at the outer ring of the area. In fact shooting there was pretty much 70s style with the actor sitting under the umbrella and his attendants on the move. Of course it was stressful to shoot there but results have been worth it.”

Well, we too are waiting for the results to see if the iconic shoot from Agneepath indeed gets replicated here.