‘The Empire’ has recorded an overwhelming response from the audience and several Bollywood stars. Helmed by Mitakshara Kumar, the series has also faced criticism from a section of audience as they believe the show glorifies Mughals. Speaking about that, Dino Morea, who plays Shehbaani on the show, has refuted all allegations and said that the story for the show has been 'fictionalised'.
“If you read the book, you will understand that there is a lot of fiction mixed with history to dramatise the narrative and make it more fun to read. Likewise, we have fictionalised our story as well, so viewers remain engaged with the story. Yes, it tells the story of the Mughal era, but we are not glorifying anybody. It’s not history; it’s just a lot of fiction,” said Dino Morea in an interview with Free Press Journal.
Dino Morea had made his debut with television show Captain Vyom and then switched to Bollywood with the 1999 romance drama Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi.
Dino also shared his concerns about being typecast if he is offered another negative role. The Raaz actor said, "As an actor, I’m not really worried about being typecast. I feel it doesn’t happen anymore. Every character has its unique trajectory, and I try to do my best for every role I take up. So, yes, if offered another negative role, I will take it. I feel certain negative characters, or the ones with grey shades, provide more scope for acting. These characters help you excel. And such interesting characters allure me.”
After the release of the show, Dino had denied being influenced by Ranveer Singh's character Alauddin Khilji in Padmaavat. But when Ranveer recently praised Dino for his performance and went on to comment on his fierce looks in the series, calling him ‘Italian Stallion’, he replied, "Thanks my Khilji."
The Empire, an eight-episode long streaming series, is based on the novel Empire of the Moghul by Alex Rutherford. The series features Dino as the antagonist Muhammad Shaybani Khan, Kunal Kapoor as Babur, Shabana Azmi as Aisan Daulat Begum, Drashti Dhami as Khanzada Begum and Aditya Seal as Humayun.
Image Source: Instagram/thedinomorea