Actor Rana Daggubati lost almost 30 kgs for his upcoming movie “Haathi Mere Saathi”, in which he will be seen playing the role of a jungle man called Bandev.

To fit into the shape of his character, Rana followed a strict diet and underwent extensive training.

“Prabu Solomon sir (director) wanted everything to be real and organic. It was very difficult for me to lose all the weight since I have always been a guy with a big physique. I had to undergo extensive physical training to get the lean look for this character of Bandev. It has been a wonderful and learning experience for me,” Rana informed.

The trilingual movie shot in two different countries, in four forest locales in Kerala, Mahabaleshwar, Mumbai in India, and in Thailand, took 250 days to shoot, involving 145 cast and crew. The film will also release as “Kaadan” in Tamil and “Aranya” in Telugu.

Rana is the protagonist in all three titles. While Pulkit Samrat plays Rana’s parallel lead in the Hindi version, southern actor Vishnu Vishal essays the role in “Kaadan” and “Aranya”.

The heroines in all three versions are Shriya Pilgaonkar and Zoya Hussain.

The movie is inspired by the unfortunate event of humans encroaching upon the elephant corridor in Kaziranga, Assam. It traces the narrative of a man, essayed by Rana, who dedicates most of his life living in the jungle, with the sole purpose of protecting wild animals.

Produced by Eros International, “Haathi Mere Saathi” is slated to hit the screens on April 2.