<p>Actor Sushant Singh Rajput says he did not pretend to be Dhoni, but actually felt like the cricketer while essaying the title role in the upcoming biopic "M S Dhoni: The Untold Story".<br /><br /></p>.<p>For Sushant, the role of Dhoni was not tough, but he found it difficult to get his mannerisms right.<br /><br />"It was not tough (to play Dhoni in film) because of the expectations of the audience. We as actors have to convince ourselves that we are the characters. I had strong visual reference of him, so it was a difficult task for me," Sushant told reporters here at an event.<br /><br />"I immersed into the film completely. When I was shooting for the film on day one, I did not pretend to be Dhoni, I was Dhoni," he said.<br /><br />The actor, who is a big fan of Dhoni, doesn't think about the response while doing the film.<br /><br />"But when the film is about to release, I think about how people will respond. Before that, I am a selfish actor and I look for excitement," he said.<br /><br />To get into the skin of the character, the actor trained for 11 months before the shooting.<br /><br />Since Dhoni is known for his trademark 'helicopter' shot, Sushant worked to get it right.<br /><br />"On the first day, by the end I got that helicopter shot. After the shot I realised I was in pain, I had got hairline fracture so I was on two-week leave. Now, I can do helicopter shot nicely," he said.<br /><br />When asked about the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) allegedly curbing freedom of expression of filmmakers, Sushant said it's disheartening if anything relevant to a film is asked to be removed or changed.<br /><br />"We are only talking, they (CBFC) are cutting us. To actually ask to remove something important from a film has a ripple effect on the entire film. An artist or any creative person doesn't feel good if anything important is asked to be removed from a film," he said.<br /><br />The biopic, directed by Neeraj Pandey, hits the cinema houses on September 30</p>
<p>Actor Sushant Singh Rajput says he did not pretend to be Dhoni, but actually felt like the cricketer while essaying the title role in the upcoming biopic "M S Dhoni: The Untold Story".<br /><br /></p>.<p>For Sushant, the role of Dhoni was not tough, but he found it difficult to get his mannerisms right.<br /><br />"It was not tough (to play Dhoni in film) because of the expectations of the audience. We as actors have to convince ourselves that we are the characters. I had strong visual reference of him, so it was a difficult task for me," Sushant told reporters here at an event.<br /><br />"I immersed into the film completely. When I was shooting for the film on day one, I did not pretend to be Dhoni, I was Dhoni," he said.<br /><br />The actor, who is a big fan of Dhoni, doesn't think about the response while doing the film.<br /><br />"But when the film is about to release, I think about how people will respond. Before that, I am a selfish actor and I look for excitement," he said.<br /><br />To get into the skin of the character, the actor trained for 11 months before the shooting.<br /><br />Since Dhoni is known for his trademark 'helicopter' shot, Sushant worked to get it right.<br /><br />"On the first day, by the end I got that helicopter shot. After the shot I realised I was in pain, I had got hairline fracture so I was on two-week leave. Now, I can do helicopter shot nicely," he said.<br /><br />When asked about the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) allegedly curbing freedom of expression of filmmakers, Sushant said it's disheartening if anything relevant to a film is asked to be removed or changed.<br /><br />"We are only talking, they (CBFC) are cutting us. To actually ask to remove something important from a film has a ripple effect on the entire film. An artist or any creative person doesn't feel good if anything important is asked to be removed from a film," he said.<br /><br />The biopic, directed by Neeraj Pandey, hits the cinema houses on September 30</p>