The audiences that ventured out to the cinemas on Diwali to watch Thamma were treated with a surprise in the form of the trailer of Ikkis. It tells the story of Arun Khetarpal, who, at 21, became the youngest recipient of the Param Vir Chakra for the bravery he showed during the 1971 India-Pakistan war. The promo got noticed because of the subject, casting and also authenticity. Depicting the bygone era correctly was no easy task and Bollywood Hungama has exclusively learned that the makers went to insane lengths for this aspect.
Those who make old films usually source old or discarded war tanks. But Ikkis’ director Sriram Raghavan exclusively told Bollywood Hungama that they created tanks from scratch. Sriram explained, “The centurion tanks no longer exist. They are mostly displayed as showpieces. You must have seen them outside army institutions or cantonments. Hence, we got all the designs and fabricated them. The idea was that the boy should feel he was in a tank and that our tanks should have its weight and grandeur. The tank is a monster, actually! So, the feeling of it had to come in every scene.”
Sources told Bollywood Hungama that a mammoth budget was spent on creating the tanks. Sriram confessed that he doesn’t have information on the cost. But he added, “It was a little tricky. That’s why we took time. There was a lot of trial and error. At times, we would feel if we could do better.”
He further stated, “Moreover, we shot in real locations outdoors. The film hasn’t been shot against a green screen. The tanks had to move as we filmed in marshy land and in rivers.”
When asked how long the process took, Sriram Raghavan replied, “It took us 3 to 6 months. Once the tank was made, we would try it out on different terrain and gauge its speed. At times, we failed. We would make something and after 2 days, we would realize that it was not working as intended, as it would move a little bit and stop, or it was taking a lot of time to turn.”
Sriram Raghavan signed off by saying, “We made 3 tanks that could move and they weighed 4 to 5 tons. We also had 2 dummies for long shots. It was truly an adventure and I am happy that it's over!”
Ikkis stars Agastya Nanda, Jaideep Ahlawat, newcomer Simar Bhatia and the late Dharmendra. Produced by Dinesh Vijan’s Maddock Films, it releases in cinemas on January 1.
More Pages: Ikkis Box Office Collection , Ikkis Movie Review
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