Vicky reveals he has 275 pics of Sam Manekshaw

NEW DELHI: Actor Vicky Kaushal revealed he has over 200 pictures of the first field marshal Sam Manekshaw in every posture and that till now he hasn't come across any image of him anywhere which is not on his phone.

Talking about prepping for the character, which he has aced completely, Vicky told the media: "I have an album in my phone, which says 'Sam', which has about 275 pictures of him in every posture of him -- sitting and standing, and till now I haven't come across any picture of him on Google or anywhere which is not on my phone."

"But that was the fun of it that we were just obsessed to create him as it was once in a lifetime opportunity for me to play a man like him. I wanted to give everything that I could," he said.

The actor shared more anecdotes about the film and his preparation to nail the look.

"When you are in the thick of the storm of preparing for a character, sometimes you don't realise all the things that you are doing but the things I remember are of course how would I walk, talk, how much he would bend and sit, in everything and every scene."

"Three months before we started shooting, Meghna and I would sit at least 5-7 hours together, and just read the script over and over again, watch his videos, read about him, and just discuss Sam everyday for 5-6 hours. There were no Sundays and off days. In my bedroom I would walk like Sam, and Meghna Gulzar used to look at me through the zoom call."

Vicky shared that "there was a constant prep so that by the time we reached the floor."

The 35-year-old actor, who is married to actress Katrina Kaif, added: "It's like my second nature, it's an impulse to me on how Sam would walk and talk but that was just the surface which was a lot of fun. It was always about catching the spirit of this man, his mindset -- that came with a lot of reading about him, meeting the family members, who were really helpful and sweet."

The National Award-winning actor revealed that his parents are both from Punjab and have seen the 1971 war.

"I didn't know how Sam Manekshaw looked. So during the conversation with Meghna. I silently googled him and said he is so handsome, and I won't get his role. It's an honour for me, and I think it is the toughest role till date because of just the man he was. It's truly a massive team effort, and Meghna's research."

Vicky was in the capital for the trailer launch of 'Sam Bahadur'. He was joined by General Manoj Pande (Chief of Indian Army), Sanya Malhotra, Fatima Sana Shaikh and Meghna Gulzar.

Before the trailer was dropped, Vicky was at the Sarvadharmasthal of the 6th Battalion Sikh Regiment and sought blessings.

The actor took to Instagram, where he shared a video of him being blessed.

For the caption, he wrote: "Seeking blessings before the Sam Bahadur trailer launch today at the Sarvadharmasthal of 6th Battalion Sikh Regiment. Rabb meher bakshe!"

The film is scheduled to release on December 1.