It was a very moving moment. “Almost as moving as when Mr Bal Thackeray hugged me after Sarkar for capturing his life,” says Ram Gopal Varma. When Sholay producer G.P. Sippy read about Ramu’s plans to remake Sholay, he made a trip to Ramu’s office, hugged him and said he was sure Ramu would do full justice to Sholay.

Now that the project has been blessed by the grand-master, Sholay ?or shall we call it?Ram Gopal Varma Ka Sholay, the astute star-making director has begun to look at the casting for the new-age version of the ageless classic. And though several names are being thrown around for the other legendary parts in the Salim-Javed script, Ramu has so far locked in on only one character, Jai, played by the mighty Amitabh Bachchan.

And Ramu’s choice for his remake is?.Mohit Ahlawat! Says the star maker, “Though I’m yet to zero in on the actors for the other characters ? there are so many of them, big and small, and they’re all legendary ? I’m certain that I want Mohit for Mr Bachchan’s character. He has that brooding intensity on screen which is required.”

Mohit, now getting ready for the release of his maiden film, James (from The Factory) can’t believe his luck. “It’s the most exciting thing to have happened so far, even more exciting than James. Imagine getting to play the dream role so early in my career. I’ve watched Sholay repeatedly. And if I had to choose the one role from the film I’d have chosen Mr Bachchan’s . He was awesome. I can’t hope to recreate even a bit of his magic. But I’ll try. I’ll be watching Mr Bachchan’s performance very carefully in Sholay. I feel it will be a huge learning experience for me.”

Is Mohit aware that Shah Rukh Khan is reprising another legendary Bachchan role? “Yes, I’m aware he’s doing Don. And now I’m doing Sholay. It’s good that we’ll have new interpretations of these classics. It makes life more exciting,” says the Haryana lad who tied the knot with his long-standing girlfriend recently.

“It has changed my life. I feel so much more confident and ready to face the world. Earlier I used to go back to an empty home. Now there’s someone waiting for me.” And then as an afterthought? “At the end of Sholay, Jai didn’t get the woman he loved. Thank God my love story has a happy ending.” ? SKJ