Abhishek Bachchan will be seen in a heart-wrenching and intense role in Shoojit Sircar’s ‘I Want to Talk’, where he will play the role of a man battling a terminal illness. In an exclusive conversation with India Today Digital, the filmmaker shared details about his casting choice and how Abhishek’s performance reflects the qualities of his parents, Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan.

Discussing his decision to cast Abhishek, Shoojit revealed that the actor’s name kept coming up during script discussions with his producers. The two later met during a film festival in Australia, where Abhishek invited Shoojit for dinner.

Shoojit joked, “I still tell him that he bribed me by taking me out for dinner.” He said that during their conversation that night, he saw a side of Abhishek that he had never seen before – a “warm and childlike” side. “He was desperate to get into his second innings,” he recalled.

While comparing Abhishek to his famous parents, Shoojit said, “Everyone talks about how much he is like his father, but I have seen a lot in Jaya Di, especially in her eyes, her In their behavior and the way they talk. We have seen Jaya Di in films like Mahanagar or Abhiman…she was so pure. I saw the same purity in Abhishek. His eyes spoke to me.”

Reflecting on his experience of working with both Amitabh and Abhishek, Shoojit shared that although both the actors have immense discipline and passion towards their art, they have different approaches towards their work. “With Bachchan sir, he likes to rehearse for hours. But Abhishek likes to hang out on the sets, understand everything and read the script again and again. For this film, however, he was very simple and disciplined. He ‘Dedicated completely till you become Arjun, you won’t see anything else in the film, even on the sets, that character was there.’

Shoojit also said that Abhishek’s personal life as a “father of a girl” matches the story of I Want to Talk. “He has a beautiful relationship with his daughter Aaradhya and I think that’s what connects him to the story,” he said.

About Abhishek’s commitment towards the role, Shoojit revealed, “He really prepared himself for this film. He even showed me his body and said he could eat more if I wanted him to have a bigger belly. What you see on the poster is all real.

I Want to Talk is set to release in theaters on November 22.