John Abraham’s spy thriller, Romeo Akbar Walter (RAW) has added another stellar actor to its cast. Jackie Shroff has been roped in to play the role of RAW chief in the movie. The news was confirmed by a leading daily and producer Bunty Walia said, “It was Robbie’s (Grewal, director) call to have Jackie sir in the film. His character is based on a real person, a really stylish man from the ’70s, and Jackie sir fits the bill perfectly.”
However, the filmmaker has refused to divulge the inspiration behind John Abraham’s RAW agent character, who essays the title role in the film. For the uninitiated, the film was earlier starring Sushant Singh Rajput but the actor exited the project without any prior notice (in 2017), and RAW fell into John's kitty.
Recently, another daily had reported that the film was shelved as the movie was similar to Alia Bhatt’s Raazi. However, now the filmmakers have confirmed that the movie is very much happening and will roll out in June. Bunty Walia’s production partner, Ajay Kapoor, reportedly said that John really liked the script and came on board on the same day as the narration; even Shroff was quick to join in. They are currently scouring for a leading lady to be cast opposite John.
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John is currently going through some extensive look tests as he would be sporting a number of disguises since he is playing the role of a spy and will be sporting five different avatars in the film. National award-winning makeup artist Vikram Gaikwad has been roped in to create the different looks for John in the movie. Amera Punwani has also joined the crew as costume designer for John.
Director Robbie Grewal said that John will be seen in a leaner physique in this movie instead of his bulked-up physique. However, the actor will not only have to transform physically but will also have to take training workshops before the shoot to understand how a spy works.
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A 60-day non-stop shooting schedule has been planned from June 2018 onwards and the producers are hoping to wrap the project by July-end so that the film can hit theatres by the end of the year. Grewal is currently scouting locations for the film in Gujarat and will soon be heading to Kashmir. The film will be shot in Gujarat, Kashmir, Delhi and in parts of Nepal.
