In making an Indian adaptation of “Forrest Gump,” Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan never knew what he was going to get.
Khan is the lead actor and producer of “Laal Singh Chaddha,” which reimagines the Oscar-winning movie about a simple man’s extraordinary life using Indian culture and historical events as its backdrop.
The 57-year-old Khan long considered “Forrest Gump” among his favorite films, but was so skeptical when friend Atul Kulkarni told him he’d written a Hindi adaptation in 2008 that he didn’t review the script until two years later.
“A film like ‘Forrest Gump’ is deeply rooted in American culture. I couldn’t imagine it as an Indian film,” Khan told the Daily News.
“When I heard his script, that’s when everything changed for me, because what he’d written was so amazing, and he’d adapted it so seamlessly, it was like I was listening to an Indian film. ... It’s something that suddenly had a life of its own.”
Premiering in theaters worldwide Thursday, the film follows Khan’s Laal as he looks back on his relationship with childhood friend Rupa, his unexpected success as a college sprinter, and his formative stint with the Indian military.
The film updates the Tom Hanks-led “Forrest Gump” to reflect Indian customs, replacing the box of chocolates with the golgappa snack, setting the story aboard a train instead of at a bus stop, and depicting the country’s Kargil War against Pakistan.
It comes nearly three decades after “Forrest Gump” premiered in 1994, winning six Academy Awards, including best picture, best actor for Hanks and best director for Robert Zemeckis. It was preserved in the U.S. National Film Registry in 2011.
“I just loved it when I saw it the first time,” Khan said. “The character of Forrest really touched me deeply. The innocence and love he has in his heart. ... I love the fact that the film is all about miracles happening in the life of a simple man who is so pure of heart.”
It took eight years to acquire the rights to remake “Forrest Gump,” with Khan even meeting with Steven Spielberg out of hope the director could connect him with his friend Zemeckis. That meeting also introduced Khan to Hanks, who was making a film with Spielberg at the time.
The attempt to speak with Zemeckis was ultimately unsuccessful, but Khan finally got the rights in 2018 and began production the following year.
“Being in my 50s and having to play a character that goes across the ages, and goes as low as 18 and his 20s, my biggest challenge was, how do I unlearn all the things that I’ve learned?” Khan said. “How do I let go of the experiences that I’ve had, to have that raw, simple innocence?”
Khan is among India’s most popular actors, known for blockbusters such as “Lagaan” and “Dangal,” the country’s highest-grossing film of all time.
He knew he needed a similarly standout director to handle the complexities of “Laal Singh Chaddha,” and asked past collaborator Advait Chandan to audition for the job by shooting test scenes with his son Junaid Khan, now 29, playing Laal.
The tryout convinced Khan that Chandan was the right director, while his son’s youthful interpretation of Laal in the screen tests helped the actor unlock his own performance.
“The way he was approaching (scenes), I would have never done it that way,” Khan said. “I would have never thought of doing it that way. That’s what really helped me tune in and crack into the key of the character.”
The film’s production team used technology to adjust Khan’s appearance as he depicted different stages of Laal’s life.
The actor is excited for American audiences to check out his version of one of Hollywood’s most beloved films.
“As far as I’m concerned, Americans had already seen ‘Forrest Gump,’ so when we were making it, it was for an Indian audience,” Khan said. “We had no idea that Paramount would love the film so much and would want to distribute it in the U.S. and all around the world. That came as a surprise for us, and we’re really thrilled.
“I want Americans to watch this film, and I would like it to provoke the memory of ‘Forrest Gump,’ but also be something new for them as well.”
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