An actor prepared

Dev Patel was all of 17 years when the 26/11 attacks happened in Mumbai, barely a month after the actor shot for the film Slumdog Millionaire in the city. When he first heard of the film ‘Hotel Mumbai’, he instantly wanted to be a part of it because he knew how much his family was shaken after the event. His character in the film risks his life to save the guests stuck in the hotel.

Moved by the script, Dev took it upon himself to research extensively on the subject and character he built from a scratch, referring constantly to the written material by Anthony Maras. Playing a Sikh man for the first time in his career, Dev wanted his portrayal to be authentic. The actor prepared for his part for two months, living with Sikh families in Mumbai and learning their way of life.

Shares Dev, “A young Sikh man once took off his turban to stop someone from bleeding after a car crash. These are the things I held on to. It’s a selfless and incredible community. In their gurdwara, it reads – ‘my turban, my pride’. It became one of the speeches in the film.”