KR Gokul played Hakeem in 'Aadujeevitham'. He took inspiration from 'Batman' actor, Christian Bale who lost 28 kgs for his character, Trevor Reznik, in the 2004 thriller, 'The Machinist'.
Actor Prithviraj Sukumaran has received rave reviews for his stellar act in 'Aadujeevitham' aka 'The Goat Life'. The Malayalam superstar has undergone a massive physical transformation for the survival drama. Yet another actor of the film, KR Gokul has left no stone unturned for his role in the Blessy directorial. Gokul played Hakeem in the film and took inspiration from actor Christian Bale who lost 28 kgs for his character, Trevor Reznik, in the 2004 thriller, 'The Machinist'.
When Gokul was asked if the physical transformation for the role of Hakeem took a toll on his mental health, he said it 'took a toll on him ''physically and mentally''. He shared, ''All the experiments I carried out to lose weight for Hakeem helped me play the character realistically. I was on a water diet and cutting calories gradually. I had to push myself to the maximum for the last 15 days. I was starving myself and was on black coffee for 15 days. I collapsed on the third day itself.''
The actor also said that he had to eat something to keep his brain awake and was ''frustrated, angry and had lots of mood swings''. He added, ''It was my family and friends who suffered the most. It really took a toll on my mental health.''
He further said, ''I was really happy when my portions were completed, as you can eat anything you want. My portions were completed when we were in Jordan, and I was working as an assistant director for the rest of the schedule. I started working out and ate whatever I wanted in Jordan. It was a huge relief. Poor Raju ettan (Prithviraj) had to continue further. He had to endure that kind of suffering more than I did.''
'Aadujeevitham' released in theatres worldwide on March 28. It has received an overwhelming response at the box office.