Pankaj Tripathi to play Atal Bihari Vajpayee in his biopic

Pankaj Tripathi shares his first look as Atal Bihari Vajpayee on former Indian PM's birth anniversary

New Delhi, Dec 25: Actor Pankaj Tripathi will be playing the role of India's beloved former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in his biopic 'Main Atal Hoon'. The first look was unveiled on the occasion of the BJP's icon 98th birth anniversary on Sunday.

Tripathi posted a few looks from the upcoming movie, introducing Vajpayee as a PM, poet, statesman and gentleman.

In the posters, Tripathi has sported a dhoti-kurta and a jacket with prosthetics to resemble the former PM. The actor captioned the post in Hindi, writing, "I know that it is necessary for me to work on my personality with restraint in order to make 'Atal' ji's personality come true on screen. I have firm faith that I will be able to do justice to my new role with enthusiasm and morale."Pankaj also shared a video montage and wrote in Hindi, 'I have got this opportunity to portray this rare personality on screen. I am emotional and grateful."

The movie throws light around the journey of the multifaceted ex-Prime Minister who was also a poet, a statesman, a leader and a humanitarian.

Ravi Jadhav is directing the movie, while Utkarsh Naithani has written the story. The music for the film will be composed by Salim-Sulaiman with lyrics by Sameer, while Sonu Nigam has rendered vocals for the motion video announcement.

'Main ATAL Hoon' presented by Bhanushali Studios Limited and Legend Studios, is produced by Vinod Bhanushali, Sandeep Singh, Sam Khan & Kamlesh Bhanushali and co-produced by Zeeshan Ahmad and Shivv Sharma.

The film will release in December 2023.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday paid tributes to Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his 98th birth anniversary, and said his contribution to India is indelible. Vajpayee led the BJP to power at the Centre in the 90s and remained India's prime minister for six years. Modi tweeted, "Tributes to Atal Ji on his Jayanti. His contribution to India is indelible. His leadership and vision motivate millions of people."

He also visited 'Sadaiv Atal', the memorial to the former prime minister, to pay his respects to the late BJP leader.