He lost for Gandhi while he gained for a Wrestler

National Award winning actor Atul Kulkarni had recently shed 17 kg of his weight to don the character of Mahatma Gandhi in a play called Gandhi Vs Gandhi.

He lost for Gandhi while he gained for a Wrestler

National Award winning actor Atul Kulkarni had recently shed 17 kg of his weight to don the character of Mahatma Gandhi in a play called Gandhi Vs Gandhi.

Then again, he has put on 15 kg extra for his forthcoming film Natrang in which he plays a rural wrestler called Guna.

Kulkarni weighed 68 kg before he started losing weight and then, in mere 45 days, he gained mass and now weighs around 85 kg.

u00a0"It might be a record in Indian cinema", said Kulkarni. He added that the entire process of losing and then gaining weight was scientific and doesn't have any side effects.

"I am not following Aamir or Shah Rukh Khan. Actually, the character of Guna demanded a bulky body, as he is a peasant and traditional wrestler."

Speaking about how he did the unbelievable, Kulkarni said, "I used to consume more carbohydrates and used to run 12 km every morning."

He added that no sooner he started gaining weight; he could fell the change in himself. "I became so hefty that my thighs used to brush against each other.

I felt like playing a split personality like Mr Jekyll and Hyde," he said. Besides, he quipped that some of his old friends could not even recognise him.

Speaking about the major transformation, Kulkarni said, "Natrang is an offbeat film and putting on and reducing weight was fulfilling for me in both ways, physically as well as psychologically."

About the film

Natrang is the first film produced by Zee Talkies and is directed by Ravi Jadhav, who's a debutant.

The film is based on veteran Marathi writer Dr Anand Yadav and Kulkarni plays an amateur wrestler who's ultimate dream is to play the king in Tamasha, a traditional art.

The film also starts Sonali Kulkarni, Kishor Kadam and Priya Berde and is slated for release this September.