Peepli Live character modelled on Salman

If you’ve watched Peepli Live, you’d find it hard to miss Salman Khan’s influence on the movie. The character of the stringer Rakesh played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui reminds one of Sallu.

If you’ve watched Peepli Live, you’d find it hard to miss Salman Khan’s influence on the movie. The character of the stringer Rakesh played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui, prominently displayed his silver and blue bracelet, the exact same piece that Salman’s been sporting for years.

“I loved Peepli Live, especially my character in it,” Salman laughed, when asked whether he had seen the movie. He added, “I just thought he should have been more justified. But they killed him off.”

Ask director Anusha Rizvi whether Salman served as inspiration for the character of Rakesh and she responds, “Salman was probably joking because the character is shown as a nice guy. But basically, Rakesh is from a small town and he’s seen Salman’s posters featuring that bracelet everywhere. But the character doesn’t aspire to be a movie star or anything like that.”

While insisting that the idea to include the bracelet was a team decision, she admits that the main reason for picking it was because they needed a subtle form of identification. "He’s a small town guy, we couldn’t have tattooed his arm or anything. Since imitations of those bracelets are available on the street for Rs 10, we thought we’d use that. It’s also instantly recognizable because you’ve seen Salman wearing it for years."