Can Amitabh do a Lolita?

Amitabh Bachchan can do anything.

The actor has played it all, from messiah to psychopath to superhero, and handled it well. Now comes yet another challenge: will the actor be accepted in a role as controversial as Nishabd [ Images ]?

The Ram Gopal Varma [ Images ] film is said to be based on one of the finest novels of the century, Vladimir Nabakov's super-controversial Lolita.

Will audiences be able to stomach Bachchan as a paedophile? RGV is careful, however, to keep the girl old enough to avoid legal implications -- Bollywood newcomer Jia will play an 18 year old, while the Big B's [ Images ] character will be 54. The director has described the film as 'a passionate love story.'

Also, films based on Lolita could prove suicidal to an actor's image. Jeremy Irons [ Images ] has still not completely recovered after playing the infamous protagonist in a weak 1997 adaptation.

What will become of Bachchan playing such a risky role, especially in front of an audience that considers 'Lolita' itself nothing more than a Shakti Kapoor [ Images ] catchphrase?

What do you think? Can the Big B pull it off?