Bir Bhaumik Rath may not have appeared in any film so far but he is being billed as the next big thing in the Odia film industry. Nicknamed Google, the young boy is all set to make his acting debut in Patnagarh, a most awaited bilingual film based on the sensational killing of Souymasekhar, a techie, in a parcel bomb blast. The newly-wed Soumyasekhar and his grandmother of Patnagarh in Bolangir district were blown up by a ‘gift bomb’ sent by a colleague of the former’s mother. The film will soon be in theatres, but Bir has already grabbed a lot of attention for his ‘unbelievable’ acting. This kid is among the most special talents to be seen in the film industry in a long time, said some crew members of the film.
Son of telecom engineer Bibudhendu Rath and homemaker Shalinee Mishra, Bir is uninhibited once the camera starts rolling. Before being selected for the movie, he had never appeared in commercials or television soaps. On getting this major break in a big budget film, his mother says, “Bir is a diehard fan of Salman Khan. Though he doesn’t imitate the Hindi film star, he possesses an uncanny ability to memorise Salman’s dialogues and deliver them flawlessly and at one go. There is no doubt that he is a natural actor. Actress Mamta Nanda, who used to be our neighbour, rang me up when auditions for child artistes were going on for the movie Patnagarh. I took Bir for the audition. A team from Hyderabad, including Patnagarh director Rajesh Touchriver and producer Sridhar Martha, were there to finalise the cast. At that time, Bir developed a rapport with the cameraman and other crew members of the movie. He was first interviewed by producer Martha. Director Rajesh Touchriver interviewed him a few days later. The next day, I received a call from the director on Bir’s selection. Eight kids participated in the audition, but Bir was picked to play the character.”
She adds: “Bir does not know the nuances of acting. But he loves to face the camera and be in that environment. During the shooting, he followed his director’s instructions. I feel really proud of him because he got an opportunity to showcase his talent before actors like Atul Kulkarni, Manoj Mishra and Chinmay Mishra in his very first movie.”
Bir has topped in many fancy dress competitions and is very popular in the locality. When he was in LKG, he played the role of Bal Ganesh and won the first prize. Besides acting, he is good at painting and has taken part in debate competitions. His mother says, “Bir is an all-rounder. Be it sports, studies, extracurricular activities or acting, he gives his best always. Apart from bagging prizes in school, he has got many prizes in competitions held in our society.”
The Class I student of ODM Public School says he is inspired by his parents and teacher Aparajita Sarangi.
On being asked about his aim, Bir says with a smile, “I want to be like Salman Khan.”
RASHMI REKHA DAS, OP
