There is a pressure to not let Salman down: Zaheer Iqbal

Team Udayavani, Mar 24, 2019, 11:00 AM IST

Mumbai: Zaheer Iqbal, who is making his Bollywood debut with Salman Khan’s production “Notebook”, says there is a pressure to not disappoint the superstar.

The newcomer, who stars in the film alongside Mohnish Bahl’s daughter Pranutan, says even though Salman’s name is attached to the project, their performances in the movie will decide their fate.

“I know about the pros and cons and the pressure of being launched by Salman Khan. I know what people will say. There is a pressure to not let him (Salman) down,” Zaheer told PTI.

“He told me that his name is associated with film and therefore the film will be screened at the 12pm or 3pm slots at the theatres but after that the film will ride on us and its story. So we know that few people might come to watch because of him,” he adds.

Since his childhood Zaheer has been catching up on almost every film and his love for cinema grew further during his college days when he used to actively participate in theatre and other creative activities.

Zaheer, who worked with Sohail Khan as an assistant director on “Jai Ho”, says his training was not only about acting or dancing.

“Salman bhai also prepared us for how to face love, success and failure. He told us we can’t please everyone every time.”

“Notebook”, directed by National Award-winning filmmaker Nitin Kakkar, is adapted from Thai film “Teacher’s Dairy” and Zaheer says he has seen only a few portions of the original.

“The plot is adapted but the characterisation is different. It is an adaptation and not a remake. Nitin sir told me it is not required to see the film,” Zaheer says.

The film arrives in theatres on March 29.

Post “Notebook”, Zaheer says, his endeavour is to be a versatile performer.

“I have been approached for certain scripts but I am waiting for our film to release. The offers that I have got are all very different from one another. I like films like ‘Notebook’.