Cast returns to Kashmir to complete 'Haider' shooting

Enthusiastic crowd gathered to catch a glimpse of Irrfan Khan and newbie Shraddha Kapoor here as director Vishal Bhardwaj today resumed the shooting of 'Haider', the film adaptation of Shakespearean tragedy Hamlet based in Kashmir Valley.

The shooting of the film took place near the busy Residency Road in the heart of Srinagar city and Press Colony.

'Haider' stars Shahid Kapoor in the lead along with Shraddha, Irrfan and Tabu. While Shraddha, who plays a press reporter in the film, and Irrfan shot some scenes here, Shahid and Tabu are expected to join the crew tomorrow.

"This is the last phase of the shooting for the film here. The crew will be in Kashmir for 20-25 days," Khawar Jamsheed, line producer for the film, told PTI.

Jamsheed said most of the filming would be done in Srinagar.

"Most of the shooting for the film will be done in Srinagar city. The film will also be shot in Nishat gardens and then the crew would move to Pahalgam," he said.

Last year, the film crew had to pack up the shoot while filming at Kashmir University after the students living in hostels in the campus objected to hoisting of the national flag atop a make-shift bunker.

The rest of the shooting passed off peacefully with Bhardwaj assuring the people of Kashmir that 'Haider' would be "a real depiction of the pain people have gone through in the past two decades."

Once shunned due to militancy, Kashmir has again come up on the radar of Bollywood over the past few years.

Ten days ago, some scenes of Sajid Nadiadwala's upcoming action-thriller 'Phantom', starring Saif Ali Khan and Katrina Kaif, were shot at the famous ski-resort of Gulmarg.