Sanjay Dutt imports a saddle from USA for horse riding

Most actors today are known to go out of their way to play a character. In the latest instance of an actor going that extra mile to get into the skin of the character, Sanjay Dutt has imported a saddle so that he can train to ride a horse for his part in Ashutosh Gowariker’s Panipat.

A source close to the project’s unit says, “Sanjay sir is all geared up to play an Afghan king for the first time in the historical film. Now, the news is that as a part of his character prep, he will need to learn to ride horses.”

Apparently, it has been a while since the actor rode a horse, and he’ll be training to do so before the shoot. “Sanjay sir will begin prepping for horse riding very soon. In fact, he has imported a saddle all the way from the USA. He will be using the same saddle for his training regime,” says the source.

Although Dutt is said to be a good horse-rider, the source says that the actor wanted to make sure that he does his best. So he is polishing his riding skills by prepping and training for it extensively.

The historical drama is based on the third Battle of Panipat (circa 1761), which was fought between Ahmad Shah Durrani’s Afghani forces and Sadashivrao Bhau, who represented the Maratha Empire. “In fact, Dutt recently finished the look test for the character,” adds the source.

Dutt currently has a packed line-up. His forthcoming films include Prasthanam, Shamshera, Torbaaz, Kalank and, of course, Panipat.

Dutt couldn’t be reached for a comment.

Sanjay Dutt PHOTO: SHAKTI YADAV/HT