Namastey London, the beloved Bollywood rom-com featuring Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif, remains iconic for many reasons—chief among them being the powerful patriotic scene where Akshay’s character passionately recounts India’s rich history to a British man. Director Vipul Amrutlal Shah recently shared that filming this scene left both the actors deeply moved, with emotions running high on set.
In a recent interview with Pinkvilla, filmmaker Vipul disclosed that the final draft of the iconic scene was completed on the morning of the shoot. He mentioned that after reading the final version, Akshay and Katrina were highly impressed and believed it would have a significant impact.
The filmmaker shared that he advised the actors to keep their performance understated, emphasizing simplicity and politeness in their delivery. He believed that this approach would make the scene more impactful, and both actors followed his guidance, resulting in a powerful performance.
The director mentioned that the scene was wrapped up swiftly, completing Akshay and Katrina’s dialogue in just 2-3 hours. He explained that the actors were so emotionally engaged with the scene that it allowed them to deliver their performances with great intensity and efficiency.
Vipul explained that his approach for the scene was to keep it simple, polite, and respectful, focusing on the essence of Indian civilization. He emphasized that there was no need for insults—just a confident expression of pride. This direction made it easy for Akshay and Katrina to deliver their lines, allowing the scene to be completed in just 2-3 hours.
When asked about improvisations by the actors, Vipul Shah clarified that there were none allowed for this scene. He emphasized that he preferred to stick closely to the script.