Alex O'Neil enters Jhansi as Manu's trusted friend

It seems Alex O'Neil, Shweta Keswani's husband, whose claim to fame was Nach Baliye 3, was destined to do Jhansi Ki Rani. He was earlier offered a pivotal role in the show, but he couldn’t do it since he was apprehensive about it. The makers once again offered him the role of a British diplomat, Robert Ellis. A source says, "Lord Dalhousie appoints Robert Ellis, a new political agent for Jhansi. His working style is exactly opposite to that of Nelson’s. Robert's character is very friendly; he helps Manu and becomes her good friend in no time. His main motto is to gain everyone’s confidence in Jhansi so that it becomes easier to rule them.” Alex says, "I was approached to play another role a year ago back when the show had just begun but I couldn't do it as I was a bit apprehensive about the lingo, however I always wanted to overcome that fear. Robert Ellis is an interesting person, though he is diplomatic, he is soft spoken too. I have read a lot about Manu's bravery. It is tough for me to portray this character, as Ellis was comfortable with Hindi and I am not. I have been rehearsing for it now and juggling between two shoots from Malshej to Karjat due to my film. I am shooting for Santosh Sivan's next movie Urumi along with Prabhudeva and Prithviraj. But I am comfortable with it and hope it pays off very well." Alex's role will be on air for a few months and is likely to enter the show this weekend or early next week. Apart from Alex, Benaf Dadachanji will also enter the show as one of Gangadharrao’s suitors.