Spotted a hungry, restless artist in Brett Lee: 'UnIndian' director Anupam Sharma

Mumbai: Director Anupam Sharma of the upcoming film "UnIndian" says that he spotted a hungry and restless artist in cricketer-turned-actor Brett Lee, who was keen for some good acting. "You all know Brett Lee as a cricketer, but I have always known him as a performer; I have done television commercials with him and heard his songs. So I saw a restless artist in him, who was hungry for some good acting and good performance. "Nothing could be better than that. And when he liked the script, he was the first-choice, just like how Tannishtha (Chatterjee) was our first-choice as we had to take the film to festivals and on the international platform, she is perhaps the most popular actress." Sharma said on the sidelines of a promotional event for the film, at a mall here. Anupam is an Australia-based filmmaker, who has previously directed the Australian shoots of films like "Dil Chahta Hai", and "Heyy Babyy" among others. The film is romantic comedy based in Australia, where an Australian man, played by Brett, falls in love with a single, Indian mother played by Tannishtha, with their close friends and family expressing surprise at their choices for choosing a partner of a different culture. The film also stars Supriya Pathak, Gulshan Grover, and Akash Khurana among others. Sharma added: "The only problem I had was that when everyone from India arrived, they told me 'Oh my god! Brett Lee is acting, we are fans of him', and Brett Lee would tell me, 'Such big actors have come, how will I act in front of them', I was in the spot between them. "We had a ball making this film in Australia. It is a one-of-its-kind film between India and Australia. Just like when Brett walks on the pitch and bowls so fast, he is going to bowl everyone over. So all of you, who have one moment or the other, fallen in love, this is a film for you. It is a film with a lot of heart and a little bit of spice and I am sure you will like all your favourite stars." 'UnIndian' releases on August 19.