JOIN OUR WHATSAPP CHANNEL
Randeep Hooda says he ‘could have died’ while losing weight over and over again for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar
Actor Randeep Hooda recently spoke about how his losing weight for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar took a huge toll on him to the extent that he thought he could've died.
Randeep Hooda recently backed the historic drama Swatantrya Veer Savarkar which he not only acted in but also co-produced and directed. Hooda, who underwent a major transformation has now candidly spoken about the same and confessed that he could have nearly died while losing weight over and over again as the shoot continued getting delayed.
Randeep Hooda on staying underweight for Swatantrya Veer Savarkar
In an exclusive conversation with mid-day, Randeep Hooda talked about the journey he took for his role in Swatantrya Veer Savarkar where he had to shed a staggering 32 kilos and maintain a significantly underweight frame for 18 months. Initially set timelines for the start and conclusion of the film were not met, leading to a massive emotional and physical toll on Hooda.
The actor compared this experience to his previous weight loss for the 2016 film Sarbjit mentioning the seriousness of his condition this time around. Following the shelving of the movie by the initial producers, Hooda found himself in a risky health state. He recounted an incident where he passed out and fell from a horse.
He said, “My calf was bent at a right angle to my thigh, which makes me realise how weak I may have been.” Hooda's recovery process was painstaking and involved a period of "revenge eating," where he compensated for the long-term food deprivation. It was followed by a disciplined rehabilitation process with the help of a physiotherapist.
The revival of the film project demanded Hooda lose weight rapidly once again which made the actor adopt a fast mimicking diet to achieve a kilo-a-day weight loss target. This period was again filled with challenges, including fainting spells and frustration due to the repeated and intense efforts required to reach and maintain the target weight.
He said, “It was very tough. I would often feel extremely weak, and would faint. It’s a terrible thing for an actor to go through. But, I believe, looking the part is something every actor should do. It should be the [very least] one does. I had to suffer due to lack of organization, and had to do it twice over.”
Playing a "khata peeta" cop weighing 92 kilos before undertaking this role, Hooda had to reduce his weight to 60 kilos. Moreover, taking on the dual role of actor and director for the film was an added layer of challenge for him.
He said, “It was a test of patience, not only for me, but also for the remaining cast and crew. I’d lose my patience quickly, and often. I was concerned about the fact that I had been underweight for too long. At one point, I was begging the people involved to finish the shoot so I could get back to [eating normally].”
Will Randeep Hooda do something like this ever again?
If he does, he would “work with more like-minded people who are considerate of the project’s quality, and my health…. But I do hope I work on easier roles, in that sense.” Randeep added, “I absolutely could have died. I was in such a bad state. I [will] try to contractually bind people, if I’m going to attempt something like that.”
Unfortunately, both of these films that made Randeep Hooda go through so much on both mental and physical levels, couldn’t shine at the box office commercially.
Latest Articles
