NEW DELHI:

Ghazal virtuoso Jagjit Singh has agreed to star in a new Bollywood comedy film Anamika to promote AIDS awareness.

Prabhakar Shukla, the film’s director, said he is planning to cast either Amrita Arora or Nandana Sen in the film that aims to convey the message on AIDS without being preachy.

“Jagjit Singh has agreed to play a role in the movie after listening to the story. I intend to start shooting from September,” Prabhakar said on the sidelines of the 9th Osian’s-Cinefan film festival. “Since the topic is very sensitive, I will not make the film a serious one and will try to convey the message without preaching to the audiences.”

The filmmaker’s first film, Kahani Gudiya Ki, which narrates the true story of a woman, Gudiya, who was married to an army man who leaves for the Kargil war a week after their marriage and becomes a prisoner of war in Pakistan, has won audience appreciation at Osian’s. Prabhakar is planning another comedy Dimag Ka Dahi, and shooting is to start from October.