Monica Bellucci
in Role of Sonia Gandhi,
The ANNOTICO Report
Beautiful Italian actress
Monica Bellucci will
play the role of Italian born Sonia Gandhi,
Gulf Times
MUMBAI: Italian actress Monica Bellucci has agreed to
play the role of
Jagmohan Mundhra pursued Bellucci for six months before persuading her at last
month’s Cannes Film Festival to play the Italian-born politician and
latest torch-bearer of the Gandhi dynasty.
“Monica is the right person to play the
role. She is from
“I was after her agent for more than
six months to get an appointment and convince her that she should be a part of
our project. I met Monica finally at Cannes International Film Festival last
week where she gave me a positive answer.”
Bellucci, 41, has appeared in more than 40 films, including
The Passion of the Christ, The Brothers Grimm and as a rape victim in
Irreversible.
Gandhi married into the most powerful family
in Indian politics in 1968 after meeting Rajiv
Gandhi, who later became premier, while they were both studying in the English
city of
But her life has been marked by tragedy with
mother-in-law Indira, a former premier, killed by her
own Sikh bodyguards in 1984 and Rajiv assassinated
seven years later in a suicide bombing.
After a break from public life, Sonia Gandhi
agreed to head the Congress party that swept back to power in 2004, but she
declined the premiership.
The actors are yet to be named to play Rajiv and Indira Gandhi for the
movie based on a biography of Sonia Gandhi written by Indian journalist Rashid Kidwai.
Sonia Gandhi knows about the film but is not
involved, the director said.
The English-language film, to be shot in
“I feel Sonia Gandhi has a very
fascinating life story. She was an Italian citizen married to an Indian,”
said Mundhra, whose most recent projects included
“Provoked” starring Bollywood belle Aishwarya Rai.
“She came and settled down in
“She rules onebn (sp?) Indian people and she is not even an
Indian (by birth). I feel this is a great story to be told and therefore I want
to make a film on her life.” – AFP
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