Benjamin Button team to work on SRK’s look

Aanand L. Rai will seek the expertise of the Hollywood team to work on the look for SRK who plays a dwarf in his film.

The last five years or so have been witness to a massive leap in technology in Bollywood. Following close on the heels of its Western counterpart, the Hindi film industry has pulled its socks and the quality of VFX here can now be compared to global standards. Cashing in on the technological high is filmmaker Anand L. Rai who has already started working on the most challenging project of his career. The film, which stars Shah Rukh Khan in the lead, will see the actor play a dwarf and calls for some very advanced visual effects.

In a recent interview, SRK said that if his team gets the VFX right in Anand’s film, it would be path-breaking for the industry. The VFX done by his company Red Chillies in films like Krissh, Ra.One, Fan, and Chennai Express has been heavily appreciated. Things are set to take a big turn for Anand’s film as the team that worked in the Brad Pitt-starrer The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, has been roped in.

A source close to the project said, “Yes, work on SRK’s look has already started and Anand will invest a lot of time with Khan’s VFX team as well. The pre-production will take a lot of time but they have enough time before the film goes on floors.”

In the Brad Pitt starrer, the actor had not done a live shoot for the portions at the start of the film — it was all achieved through VFX. In fact, it was another actor who enacted those scenes in front of the camera and later, his face was replaced with Brad’s. Later Brad recorded his voice and expressions in a separate set up comprising 25 cameras which allowed frame by frame tracking. The source adds, “For Anand, it is all about storytelling and the VFX will work in such a way that it doesn’t come in the way of his shooting style. The Hollywood team will present him with many options and after discussing it with SRK and his VFX team, a final call will be taken. But this is something that has never been done in India and everyone is excited.”