Connecting with the scene-stealing Siddharth Nigam, who plays the younger Aamir Khan in Dhoom 3, is tough.
Siddharth does a lot of gymnastics and magic tricks in the film, including holding his own against Aamir in the surrealistic sequence that they share. He turns out to be a national-level gymnast from Allahabad.
Says Dhoom 3 director Vijay Krishna Acharya, “Siddharth is a national-level gymnast. All the jumps and flips that you see him do in the film were done by him. When I saw him, I saw something special in him. You know children are so unaffected. He was with me for three months. I designed a workshop with him. I am waiting for the kid to grow up so he can do Dhoom 10!"
Siddharth studies and trains for gymnatics at a boarding school in Allahabad.
Though he plays a 10-year old in Dhoom 3, Siddharth is actually 13.
"What are people saying about me in Mumbai?" Siddharth asks. "I attended the screening but after that, I came back to boarding school. I enjoyed the experience of being in this big film with big stars. So far I had only seen those stars on screen. Suddenly, Jackie uncle and Aamir uncle were in front of me. It was unreal.”
Director Vijay Krishna Acharya had spotted him in a Bournvita ad and signed him on after auditions.
"I had no problem doing any of the scenes," Siddharth says. "The only time I had a problem was when I had to call Jackie Uncle, ‘Papa’. That felt strange. Otherwise, it was fun.
"When I saw myself on screen, it felt like it was someone else, not me," he adds.
At the film’s screening, Siddharth met his idol, Amitabh Bachchan. "I had never in my wildest dreams imagined I’d actually see Amitabh uncle in person some day. But then I never thought I’d be in a movie either.”
Gymnastics are Siddharth’s first love. “I’d like to focus on that. But if I get good offers, I’d be happy to do more movies.”
