Did a lot of homework for 'Banjo': Riteish

The 37-year-old actor will be seen playing the instrument in his upcoming musical-drama Banjo. "A lot of my friends used to play banjo. Whenever there used to be Ganesh festival, we would play and dance. Understanding them or knowing them was not an issue. But we did a lot of homework," he said while speaking at the trailer launch of the film last evening.

The movie has been directed by Marathi filmmaker Ravi Jadhav. Riteish said the director's research helped him to play the role. "Ravi had shot many videos with them (Banjo players). He used to mail me. He interviewed many banjo players and used to show me their style. We tried to work hard on it. It was not about visiting a certain place to build a character. We interacted with a lot of banjo players. We had meetings, practice sessions to get the vibe, how the band plays," he said.

Banjo also stars Nargis Fakhri as a DJ from New York, who comes to Mumbai to find local talent. Banjo is scheduled to open on September 23. 

• banjo
• Riteish Deshmukh
• Nargis Fakhri