Jaideep Ahlawat on his drastic physical transformation for Maharaj: I cried while working out
Actor Jaideep Ahlawat talks about his drastic physical transformation for his role in Maharaj.
Actor Jaideep Ahlawat recently shared an Instagram post of his drastic physical transformation where he went from 109.7kgs to 83kgs in 5 months. The journey from a beer belly to washboard abs for his role in the latest project Maharaj, also starring Junaid Khan, was not an easy one. “It was an interesting and fun yet painful journey. Since a long time, I hadn’t done such vigorous exercise, moreover, I was eating so much at home during the lockdown so I had gained a lot of weight. I met Adi sir (Aditya Chopra) and he suggested me to do a body transformation as he thought people would like it,” shares Ahlawat, adding, “Everything including my diet, training, rest and sleep was happening under my trainer’s supervision. First two months were really painful, but then jab thode thode results aane lagte hain, you feel motivated and happy, so it went on for five and a half months.”
Detailing his workout and diet schedule during these five months, the actor reveals, “I used to workout 3 times a day towards the end period. I was on a calorie deficit with a high protein diet. In the beginning, my trainer didn’t make me withdraw too much from food because I didn’t know how to follow any diets. Pehle din aadmi ne 10 paraanthe khaaye ho and agle din use ek bhi na mile toh vo paagal hosakta hai, so my journey was gradual. The target for calories deficit with high protein foods. Thankfully, I don’t crave sugar or sodas in my daily routine, what’s bothersome was ghar ka khaana na khaana, like pav bhaji, chutney, lassi, chole bhature and paraanthe. Mujhe chatpate ki craving hoti thi bahut zyaada.”
“I cried a lot of times while working out because my body was in so much pain. The workout was about doing drop sets, meaning lifting lesser heavy weights with maximum repetitions. Aankhon se aansu aajaate the uthaate uthaate, but the results turn them into a smile. The target wasn’t to go very muscular, but just to achieve a normal body type,” he further adds, emphasising that his weight loss journey was absolutely done in a healthy way. “Mera journey bilkul healthy raha tha. I was just working out, eating well and sleeping on time, so it isn’t an unhealthy weight loss, five and a half months is a long span I feel. I was consistent and disciplined in those six months.”
Ahlawat is actually happy about the response Maharaj is getting and reveals that an OTT release wasn’t something already planned. “The film is getting a good response and it is a happy moment for all of us. It is a satisfactory output. It was made a long time ago, so I felt quite relieved after it was released. Pehle toh theatres hi bahut late khule COVID ke baad and uske upar se there were other reasons that I think the production team would be able to answer better. So, the OTT release was not something planned, it was supposed to be a theatrical release,” tells the 44-year-old.
Furthermore, he also touches upon the halt in its release after members of the Vaishnavite Pushtimarg sect filed a petition with the Gujarat High Court, raising concerns about how the film represented their religious beliefs. Addressing the controversy, Ahlawat says, “It was mostly the production jisne jhela zyada, uski sirr dardi itni mere upar nahi aayi. But yes, it makes you feel bad that if people have just seen the poster and not even the trailer or teaser, then how can one judge and complain without seeing what it is?” and continues, “However, things got sorted quite quickly and the court also gave its green signal for the release, we were all happy.”