It was past 10 pm when we met Nawazuddin Siddiqui at Mehboob Studios. Though he had been at the studio for over 12 hours, there wasn't an inkling of fatigue on his face. "Good films give you the energy to do that extra bit," he joked as we got into his new Mercedes and drove through the bylanes of Bandra. Fresh out of the success of Sacred Games, Nawaz remains unaware of the weight his name carries. He ponders aloud — "Am I a star yet? The day I believe that I will slap myself and say — Dafa ho jaa. I have no right to act anymore if I think that." In a chat with mid-day, he opens up about his film Manto, how the world can't stomach the truth and the many shades of Balasaheb Thackeray he has explored in the much-awaited biopic.

Excerpts from the interview: