Genius godfather for Prateik

AR Rahman is highly impressed by the actor's talent

Prateik may have none other than composer AR Rahman to thank for his role in his latest film directed by Gautam Menon.

Apparently, when Gautam decided to remake his Tamil superhit Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa, the late Smita Patil's son was just one of the many young actors under consideration for the lead role. Buzz is that Rahman helped narrow down the search.

Says a source, "Gautam had a few young faces in mind for the role, including Jackie Shroff's son Tiger. However, it was Rahman who insisted that he shouldn't bother looking for anyone else but Prateik."

Though the actor made an impressive debut with Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, his career has not exactly been on an uphill since.

Especially, his last two films Aarakshan and My Friend Pinto did little for the actor's resume. In fact, in all these years, Rahman has never really recommended any actor for a role, so naturally this comes as quite a surprise.

Adds the source, "Rahman first met Prateik during Jaane Tu and he instantly took a liking to the boy. He was pretty impressed by his performance in the film and had even predicted that he will have a bright future."

Apparently Rahman even told Gautam that he was so sure of the actor that even a screen test would be unnecessary.

Confirms the director, "It's true that Rahman had very good things to say about Prateik. He strongly suggested that I should only look at him for this role." Menon and Rahman have known and worked with each other for years together and not surprisingly he trusts Rahman's judgment a lot.

Concludes the source, "They have been friends for years now and Rahman knows how important this film is for Gautam." Only when the film releases, we'll know if Prateik has proven worthy of the maestro's trust.