I came into movies to make money; books kept me grounded: Sonali Bendre

Patna, Jan 22: Actor Kangana Ranaut has expressedher desire to make a movie on Chandragupta, the shepherd-turned-emperor who founded the Maurya dynasty, noting that the film industry has “not done enough justice to our history”.

The national award winner was here to take part in a programme organised by the publishers of a leading Hindi daily where she performed a jig to the tunes of Bhojpuri songs along with actor-turned-politician Ravi Kishan before the duo participated in a question and answer session.  Replying to the questions posed by Kishan, who is also the BJP MP from Gorakhpur, Ranaut on Tuesday said it was her second trip to Bihar.

“The last time, I was here as a child though I have not yet got a chance to explore the state with which I feel a connect as my Yoga teacher has his roots here,” she said.

Ranaut, who won acclaim for portraying Rani Laxmibai, the valiant queen of Jhansi who took on the British during the revolt of 1857 -- in ‘Manikarnika’, when asked if she would like to be associated with a film on any historical figure from Bihar, said, “It would be Chandragupta Maurya. The film industry has not done much justice to our history”.

A self-confessed admirer of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the 32-year-old, who has won three National Awards in the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories, replied in the affirmative when asked about reports that she has turned producer and her first venture is based on the theme of Ram temple in Ayodhya.

The Himachal Pradesh-born actress, who has courted controversy for taking on well-entrenched Bollywood “insiders” like Karan Johar and Hrithik Roshan, said she has had a rebellious streak since childhood and shared an anecdote about her breaking her teacher’s stick upon being hit for chatting with a classmate in school.

When Kishan asked why she has gained so much weight, Ranaut replied it was in preparation for her upcoming biopic “Thalaivi”, based on late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa.

The actress said her forthcoming release “Panga” is a family drama.

Ranaut said after landing in Patna, she gorged on ‘Litti Chokha’, a local delicacy.

She also regaled the audience by greeting them in Bhojpuri and repeating several commonly used phrases of the dialect after Kishan.

Mumbai, Jul 6: Mumbai Police on Monday recorded the statement of filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali in connection with actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death.

The director arrived at Bandra Police Station on Monday morning to give his statement.

As per reports, late actor Sushant was approached by Bhansali for his 2013 film "Goliyon Ki Rasleela: Ram-Leela". However, Sushant could not take up the offer reportedly due to his contract with a production house. Later Ranveer Singh was signed for the role. The female lead was played by Deepika Padukone and the film turned out to be a commercial success.

Meanwhile, Mumbai Police has, over the past weeks, recorded statements of Sushant's family, staff, a few of his friends, and Rhea Chakraborty, besides filmmaker Mukesh Chhabra and actress Sanjana Sanghi who worked with the late actor in his upcoming last film "Dil Bechara".

Sushant Singh Rajput was found hanging in his Mumbai residence on June 14. The actor's postmortem report stated his death was a suicide.

Within a few days of the actor's death, a complaint was filed by advocate Sudhir Kumar Ojha in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate in Bihar's Muzaffarpur. The case filed regarding the actor's death was against eight Bollywood personalities including Bhansali, Salman Khan, Karan Johar, Aditya Chopra and Ekta Kapoor.

Mumbai Police is investigating the death of the actor, though many fans on social media have been demanding a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the case.