'Ani... Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar': Reasons to watch the Subodh Bhave and Sonali Kulkarni starrer

Abhijeet Shirish Deshpande's debut directorial 'Ani... Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar' starring Subodh Bhave, Sonali Kulkarni, Anand Ingle, Suhas Palshikar, Mohan Joshi, Prasad Oak, and Sumeet Raghavan has created a lot of buzz amongst the audience, making it one of the most anticipated films of the year. Owing to the overwhelming response so far, the makers of the film have decided to release it on the auspicious occasion of Diwali, November 8. Right from its quirky concept to the stupendous performances of the actors on the big screen, we give you a rundown of reasons as to why you shouldn’t miss watching the film.

The long-awaited, 'Ani... Dr Kashinath Ghanekar' trailer begins with the legendary actor role played by Bhave who is an eminent dentist and his craze for Marathi theatre can be witnessed in the trailer. Abhijeet’s debut directorial has magically transformed Bhave into Ghanekar. Subodh nails Ghanekar's style, talk and everything in between. Unlike the previous second teaser, this three minutes clip features a lot of actual footage from the film and some of them really manage to create an impact on the viewers.

Abhijeet Deshpande's 'Ani... Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar' is biopic of Dr Kashinath Ghanekar, a legend of Marathi cinema, who was one of the superstar in glamour world and a highest paid actor during 1960's to 80. Ghanekar was also a dental surgeon but his craze for acting and to create history in Marathi cinema geared him to give up his profession. Ghanekar was popular for role of Sambhaji in the play ‘Raigadhala Jevha Jaag Yete’. The film ‘Madhuchandra’ (in 1967) made Ghanekar, a noted stage actor and a major Marathi film star.

The first time director, Abhijeet Deshpande did an in-depth research on the life of Marathi cinema's legend, Dr Kashinath Ghanekar. Speaking about his directorial film, Abhijeet told ETimes, “During my teenage days, my mother told me one real incident which had occurred in the life of Ghanekar, which I cannot disclose now before the release of the film. But, to be I was very inspired by this incident, and when I choose direction as my career, I was convinced that, I will debut with this film. We met Ghanekar's daughter and his wife to know more Ghanekar's life in detail. When I was ready with the script, I shared it with Subodh and other casts."

The king of biopics of the Marathi film industry, Subodh Bhave has already hit the bullseye with films like, 'Lokmanya: Ek Yug Purush' and 'Balgandharva' in this genre. The ‘Savita Damodar Paranjape’ actor will be seen playing Dr Kashinath Ghanekar in a biopic directed by debutant Abhijeet Deshpande, titled ‘Ani... Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar’. Speaking to ETimes, the actor said, "Dr Kashinath Ghanekar is a legend in the Marathi industry but is not very popular among the new generation. He admits that to play his role was his biggest challenge. Elaborating more, he added, “I have done biopics before and this was very tough for me. Ghanekar had that substance in whatever he spoke and during the 1950-70's when our Marathi theatre was booming because of just one man, and he was 'Dr Kashinath Ghanekar'. I was fortunate to get this film and to play such a huge role is a dream come true."

The trailer of the film has very successfully given us a glimpse into each one of the characters in the film. With all big names like Subodh Bhave as Dr Kashinath Ghanekar, Suhas Palshikar as Master Dattaram, Anand Ingle as Vasant Kanetkar, Mohan Joshi as Bhalji Pendharkar, Sonali Kulkarni as Sulochana Latkar, Prasad Oak as Prabhakar Panshikar and Sumeet Raghavan as Dr Shriram Lagoo coming together, the film has already generated a lot of curiosity, since the day it was announced. Each character in the movie has their own prominence and each in their own way contributes to the story of the film. And this certainly is one of the major highlights of the movie.