Amitabh Bachchan has got the country’s attention to a rare medical condition called Progeria.

Ikramul Khan and Ali Hossain - brothers from Dumri village in Bihar’s Chapra district were born with Progeria, the same disease that afflicts the 13-year-old Auro, played by Amitabh Bachchan in the film Paa.
The movie has momentarily turned the limelight on the brothers giving them a reason to smile, even if briefly.” There is a film on the disease that we suffer from. The film is being shown in a theatre in Chapra. We will go and see the film,” says Ali.

“I have heard about the film and am very happy that its shows our plight,” adds Ikramul.
Born in an extremely poor father, who earns Rs 2,500 a month as a security guard, in a private company, the 18-year-old and 11-year-old are dependent on their mother, Rajia, for eating, bathing and virtually their every need.
But doctors promise them no more than a 20-year life span. But for now these kids are hoping to ride on the media hype and get to meet the Big B while Paa still keeps Progeria in focus
It’s courtesy the movie PAA and the legendary Big B that the two have got sudden attention. They would surely be watching the movie once it hits the screen near their village, but their immediate desire is to meet Amitabh Bacchan in flesh and blood.

Meanwhile, it is now felt that the film’s theme of age-acceleration by progeria and its muted dramatic depiction through Amitabh’s performance as Auro deserves a global platform. Consequently, an international version of Paa is now being put together.

Paa director R Balki says, “The version for a non-Indian audience will have to be edited very differently but the connectivity with Auro’s character will remain unchanged.” A lot of Abhishek’s character’s activities as a young politician will have to be edited for the international version. However, without those scenes Abhishek’s role will become shadowy. What will remain is the central conflict involving the progeric child’s search for his biological father.

The theme of progeria is obviously a huge incentive to market the film internationally. Balki reveals, “I have a friend in the US who drove down 70 miles to a theatre in Miami to see Paa yesterday and the hall was packed. But let me tell you, I’m not the first filmmaker to tackle the subject. I thought I was embarking on a revolutionary mission by making a film on progeria but when I checked on the net I discovered there were nearly 40 films on progeria across the world.”

Balki saw all of the films based on the same subject in order to bring out a new side to the subject. He adds, “I wanted to make sure Paa had nothing in common with the other films. Now, when we do an international version we’ll ensure the audience abroad would never have seen anything like Paa.”