Adil Hussain on playing dad onscreen

This one's a literal real to reel deal. After playing the role of a father in English Vinglish, actor Adil Hussain essayed the role of a dad once again in his film, which recently won the National Award for Best English Feature Film. The film is based on Anita Nair's novel of the same name. Adil, who is the father of a three-year-old son in real life, says being a dad does come in handy while doing daddy roles.

Adil Hussain. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

He tells us, "One day Sindu Geeshink, the child artiste who plays the role of my daughter, threw a tantrum while we were shooting in Puducherry (Pondicherry). She was not willing to stand before the camera and pose. Unni Vijayan, our director got super-tensed as we were on a tight schedule. But we knew that we couldn't force a five-year-old to act! I told Unni to relax and take it easy since the weather was hot and she was only a kid."

He advised the director to let the child sleep for a couple of hours, post which she could resume the shoot. He even gave her a chocolate and coaxed her to go to sleep. He also promised to get her some balloons, which instantly lifted her spirits.

Is it easier to be a dad in films after becoming one in real life? "Yes, or else you have to pretend to be one. Pretending might work but the real connect works at all times. Creativity can be a mysterious thing. I have known actors who are not fathers in real life bonding so well with child artistes. The relationship even got better than the actual ones."u00a0