10 July,2021 07:03 AM IST | Mumbai | Mohar Basu
Akshaye Khanna
Creator-producer Abhimanyu Singh of Contiloe Pictures knew that convincing Akshaye Khanna to headline State of Siege: Temple Attack, the second instalment of the ZEE5 franchise, wouldn't be easy. The creator was relieved when the crackling script by William Borthwick and Simon Fantauzzo lured the actor, who is known to be painfully selective. "It's a good thing that Akshaye is choosy; he has a great sense of script. We approached him with a bound script. He hadn't seen [State of Siege: 26/11], so it was the written word that drew him," says Singh.
Like the 2020 series, the makers have adopted a humanist approach in the retelling of the 2002 Akshardham Temple attack. "It's a crime against humanity. Our intention is clear - we wish to put the focus on the bravado of the Indian soldiers." Filming the ambitious project in the post-pandemic world was no mean feat. Singh, who along with director Ken Ghosh led the team, says, "We shot across four states - Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra - and didn't have a single case on our set. There were no vaccines available at the time, but we took precautions."
Also read: Ken: Mridul has given a deadly performance in 'State Of Siege: Temple Attack'
