Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui, who plays the lead role in Ketan Mehta's "Manjhi - The Mountain Man", wants the symbolic mountain in Gehlaur to be considered a "symbol of love" similar to what Taj Mahal is known to the world today.
"When people go to Gehlaur and see the mountain, a comparison comes to their mind that there is a Taj Mahal and then there is this mountain. The dedication and passion was more when Manjhi had made the monument. We are hoping that in the future it is considered as a symbol of love," Nawazuddin said at a special screening of the film here.
Sharing his experiences while visiting Dashrath Manjhi's village, Nawazuddin said the atmosphere had got quite emotional and warm.
"We had heard stories but when we went there, and saw the mountain, there was an amazing and strange delight, which stuns us to think how it's even possible. But it had become possible, people couldn't believe that one person can actually do something like this which has happened in front of them and in this life," he said.
'Mountain Man' Dashrath Manjhi had, single-handedly, cut through a hill to make a road for his village. Working day and night, Manjhi had carved out a passage with a hammer and a chisel. Manjhi had taken up the uphill task after his wife was injured and he had to take a long detour around the hills to reach the nearest hospital.
The biopic, which also stars Radhika Apte, released this Friday.