Kamal Haasan recalls emotional moment filming Indian 2 without Nedumudi Venu: 'The tears you see...'

Tamil superstar Kamal Haasan revealed that the passing of his friend and co-actor Nedumudi Venu had a huge impact on him while shooting for Indian 2. Nedumudi Venu died of liver cancer in 2021 before completing the shoot for Indian 2, forcing the filmmakers to use another actor in his place.

Kamal described having a surreal experience while performing a scene with another actor standing in for Venu. It was so intense that he couldn't distinguish himself from his character Senapathy, also known as 'Indian thatha'.

"There is a twilight zone where a character and the actor become one for a moment. In the West, people go to therapy for that. That happened to me when we were doing a scene with Nedumudi Venu, but without him," he said in an interview with Film Companion.

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The production of Indian 2 began in 2019, and Nedumudi Venu shot a few scenes. He had played a key supporting role in the 1996 classic Indian, prompting director Shankar to retain his character for the sequel.

However, in February 2020, the production of Indian 2 was shut down and did not resume until 2022. In the meantime, a few actors playing supporting roles in the film, including Nedumudi Venu and Vivek, passed away.

"He (Nedumudi Venu) died midway, so we had to finish with me talking to another person in front of me. They were prominently shooting me. I had to thank and hug him (Nedumudi Venu's character). That was the most touching moment. I am very fond of him because he's a great actor. But, all good things come to an end. No more Venu. We had a shot of me hugging him. The tears that you see in the film are both mine and Senapathy's," he added.

Indian 2 is written and directed by Shankar. It marks Kamal's return to reprising the iconic Indian thatha after a gap of 28 years. The film is set to hit the screens on July 12.

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