Arjun Kapoor was in Patna, Bihar for more than a fortnight in September shooting for Raj Kumar Gupta’s India’s Most Wanted. Kapoor says he had the time of his life. “I feel proud that, as a mainstream Bollywood actor, I was one of the first to make that journey to Patna and shoot over there.”
Bihar, it should be noted, has been declared “unsafe” by many actors. Not Arjun. He says happily, “I enjoyed the love I got. I embraced the local culture. I am happy if I can change the negative mindset about shooting in this beautiful state. I hope after me other actors would also come to Patna and Bihar for shooting, because so many films are set in Bihar. But, they’ve all been cheat-shot in other places where the topography did not always match Bihar’s beautiful landscape.”
Incidentally, Prakash Jha shot none of his Bihar-based dramas in Bihar, citing “law and order issues” as an excuse. Says Arjun. “The team of India’s Most Wanted hopes this film would be a game-changer as far as shooting in Bihar is concerned. We were able to shoot in complete peace, thanks to the local government and authorities who extended all support, and also because of (director) Raj Kumar sir’s vision. He wanted to make sure India’s Most Wanted looked a 100 percent authentic.”
