R Madhavan compares Nambi Narayanan to James Bond; says fictional spy is a ‘bachcha’ in front of aerospace engineer: ‘This guy is the father of James Bond’

For the uninitiated, Narayanan was arrested on espionage charges in the 90s but was acquitted by the Supreme Court some years later.

• Mohnish Singh
• 28 June, 2022

By: Mohnish Singh

Renowned Indian actor R Madhavan is currently busy promoting his upcoming biographical drama biopic Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, which also marks his directorial debut.

During an interview, Madhavan compared Nambi Narayanan to James Bond and said the latter is a ‘bachcha’ (child) in front of the aerospace engineer. For the uninitiated, Narayanan was arrested on espionage charges in the 90s but was acquitted by the Supreme Court some years later.

“For his whole family to be thought of as a ‘spy case family’, it’s not right, and I understood the angst that he had. What shocked me more was that he was given the Padma Bhushan, but nobody knows why he got the Padma Bhushan. In fact, he wasn’t talking about it. He had written a book on his life, and he hadn’t mentioned his achievements. But when I came to know what he did; the first Ivy League scientist from India, or the fact that he went to France with 52 scientists or the fact that he went to Russia when the USSR was breaking down… This guy is the father of James Bond, James Bond bachcha nikla iske saamne, he was absolutely incredible.”

He was asked if his pursuit of excellence began after he worked with director Rajkumar Hirani on the film 3 Idiots, and he replied in Hindi, “That would be inaccurate, because I was striving for excellence even before I met him, and that is maybe why I was able to work with someone like him.”

Rocketry: The Nambi Effect also stars Simran, Rajit Kapur, Gulshan Grover, and features Shah Rukh Khan and Suriya in cameos. The film is due on July 1. It has been shot in three languages — English, Hindi, and Tamil.