Ishaan Khatter calls Brigadier Balram Mehta his ‘guiding force’ during ‘Pippa’ shoot

Mumbai, Nov 9 – Actor Ishaan Khatter, who is all set to woo the audience with his uniform look in the upcoming war film ‘Pippa’, shared in order to ensure authenticity in his performance, he sought the guidance and mentorship of Brigadier Balram Singh Mehta.

Actors often undergo significant physical and emotional transformations for their characters. Such was the case when Ishaan took on a challenging role in a war drama set during the 1971 Indo-Pak war. 

Talking about the same, Ishaan said: “Brigadier Balram Mehta was our guiding force from day one. He was kind enough to lend his time and all the information to us.” 

“He was omnipresent in the making of ‘Pippa’ shows how India played a crucial role in the Bangladesh Liberation the film — from prep to the shoot, to war,” shared Ishaan. 

Ishaan’s role in the upcoming war drama was that of a soldier, a character that demanded a deep understanding of military life, resilience, and the emotional toll of war. 

To gain this insight, Ishaan knew he needed to go beyond the script and immerse himself in the world of a soldier. 

He further shared an interesting anecdote while he was shooting with the PT-76 tank. 

“How we resurrected it, its life was literally up till we did the last shot with it. As we were doing the last show, the hull blew up and black smoke started coming out of the tank. Now, I was in the middle of a 100-ft deep lake on the tank,” he added.

‘Pippa’ is a thrilling narrative of a landmark moment in history, the ‘Battle of Garibpur’, during the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971, that was pivotal in Bangladesh’s struggle for independence.

The film also features Mrunal Thakur, Priyanshu Painyuli and Soni Razdan in pivotal roles. 

The movie is based on the book ‘The Burning Chaffees’ by Brigadier Balram Singh Mehta.

The film is written by Menon, Tanmay Mohan, and Ravinder Randhawa.

Produced by Ronnie Screwvala under the banner of RSVP and Siddharth Roy Kapur’s Roy Kapur Films, and directed by Raja Krishna Menon, it will release on Prime Video on November 10.