“In Mumbai, you have to act in real life, too.”
“There is nothing called negative character. The negativity and positivity exists in all of us.”
“I feel satisfied after achieving something difficult.”
“It’s very difficult switching over from one character to another.”
“I kind of discovered Kolkata when I was shooting here for ‘Kahaani.’ I found the city fascinating.”
“Most people go to ashrams or retreats to destress and rejuvenate themselves. But I come back to my roots, the place where I spent half my life. And when I return, I spend time in the farms, eating a stalk of sugarcane, driving a tractor, and chilling with childhood friends.”
“There was electricity in our village only for 2-3 hours a day, so all my life, I studied under a lamp.”
“If one line about the film excites me, I try to take it forward.”
“I found the brick-making process fascinating – how, after being burnt, the brick would come out strong. I liked to sit on the stack of bricks and look as far as I could. I’d do the same at a hillock near my school – just sit on top at leisure and enjoy the feeling of being on top of the world.”
“The easier it looks on screen, the more hard work goes into making it so.”
“When people say I’m a star, I don’t believe it.”
“Behind every easy role, there is a lot of hard work that goes in.”
“’Kahaani’ gave me popularity and ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’ stardom.”
“I used to clean the sets and serve tea to the artistes.”
“Even though I hated doing farming and wanted to just get out of the village, I would work from 5 in the morning till 5 in the evening.”
“Being a recognised face has its problems. I miss the freedom to go anywhere I want to.”
“Coming from a small town, I didn’t have big dreams. My biggest ambition was to find a job for myself.”
“I am a five-foot six-inch, dark, ordinary-looking man. People didn’t imagine that I would make it.”
“Many actors come and disappear into oblivion. But not Salman Khan.”
“Muzaffarnagar is 40 kilometers from my village. So I used to see films if I was able to save money and on special occasions like Eid, Diwali.”
“Bollywood has always pampered heroes and treated actors as second class citizens. But, of late, it has realised that there has to be space for actors who can connect with people.”
“I am from a family of farmers from Budhana near Muzaffarnagar.”
“When I had no money, I would find out which friend had work and money at that point in time and would go and stay with him for a week. All of us theatre guys did that.”
“’Freaky Ali’ may look like an easy role to others, but it is not easy.”
“For me, as an actor, there is no commercial or independent or art cinema. For me, it’s a character that is given by the director. And it is a task for me that I have to fulfill it to the best of my ability regardless of the kind of film that it is.”
“I still can’t believe it when people say I am a celebrity.”
“I love observing people. Each face tells so many stories. It lets me understand emotions, and that, in turn, helps me apply my skills as an actor.”
“I interact with journalists all the time, and I note how they behave.”
“I knew I would get offers to play the villain after ‘Kick,’ and I had already decided to reject all of them.”
“The success of ‘Kick’ will help in the marketing of other small budget independent films I have acted in.”
“A big blockbuster like ‘Kick’ expands the audience for my films and makes it easier to promote them.”
“Background scores allow me an absolute flight of the imagination, and I travel in my mind’s eye. I do not like the scores to have vocal notes, because they act as a limitation to these flights of fancy.”
“Before ‘Raman Raghav 2.0,’ I played a criminal in ‘Badlapur.’ Though the character was innocent, he was not correctly interpreted by some sections of the audience.”
“’Ali’ is the story of a lower middle-class golfer who becomes a champion. I find the game very interesting and would like to continue playing it regularly after the movie is wrapped up.”
“I don’t want my work to be heavy. The challenge is to make it interesting and engaging, keeping in mind the need for method acting. This is what I have learnt from Bharat Muni’s ‘Natya Shastra’ and from the Russian theatre legend Stanislavsky.”
“As far as Raman Raghav is concerned, he is ruthless.”
“I think there is no racism in this film industry. They are only in need of talent, though it takes time; but, if you are talented, you will get your due. I am thankful to be part of this industry.”
“My job is to work hard and be honest with my character, and that’s in my control. I can only try to give my best performance.”
“Love stories should be relatable.”
“At first, I was hesitant when it came to giving autographs, thinking that I am not even worth giving one. But slowly I got over that phase.”
“I don’t believe in the 100 crore club.”
“I feel happy that I am being honoured for doing films of my own liking.”
“After graduating from National School of Drama, I started doing theatre in Delhi. But there was not much money in Hindi theatre.”
“Rituparno Ghosh is a legendary director, and I happen to be a huge fan of his.”
“How long will we keep making films where hero-heroine is dancing around trees?”
“I have seen many teachers in real life, which come from the same background and morality and treat their profession like just another one rather than a noble profession.”
“Like the way we get to know about the society of Korea, Iran, and other countries through their films, people will get to know about our country. Our films are a mirror of our society.”
“I would be happy if people just called me an actor.”
“I can go back to poverty if a situation comes. I have sailed through the worst days of my life, and I am prepared for any crisis.”
“I was introduced to cinema by C-grade films that played in my village, Budhana, in UP. Only films by Dada Kondke, Mahendra Sandhu, and Kanti Shah were available.”
“I used to be the best comic actor in my batch. Everyone knew that my comic timing was impeccable.”
“There are thousands of ways to make people laugh – satire, black comedy, slapstick.”
“The village I come from is the most ruthless, lawless land one can encounter.”
“’Haraamkhor’ is a low budget film. We are not worried about the box office because our film is already in profit. It’s got a strong content that will reach people’s heart.”
“It’s not necessary that every film has to hit Rs 100 crore box office, or the Rs 50 crore budget. If the film makes double of its project budget, we consider that a hit, and that also means that the film is in profit.”
“My character should not be ordinary, cliched, and if I feel that it’s difficult to do this character, I take up that challenge to get into his character.”
“One should go to the line through the character. You should see their lifestyle in the way they speak.”
“My character in the first instalment of ‘GOW’ was very shy and reserved. It was completely different from ‘Kahaani,’ where I played a no-nonsense cop. And in the second instalment of ‘GOW,’ it is again very different.”
“Back in 1993, I was studying in Delhi, and I had a girlfriend. I had never touched a girl before that in my entire life. One day, I decided to go out with her to a garden. We were sitting beside each other, and I just glanced around to see if anyone was looking at us, and I put my hand over hers. I thought love started in this way.”
“I have fallen in love so many times. If one relationship ended, I would search for another girl. I was always madly in love with all the girls that I dated.”
“I believe everyone is mad when they are in love, and I don’t think that can ever end.”
“The difference between an actor and a star is the budget and the overall presentation of a film.”
“I am trying every genre.”
“When someone is looking at me, I feel they are looking at someone standing behind me, not at me.”
“I am very confident about my work because I have worked very hard.”
“Kabir Khan is that rare director who manages to merge Bollywood formula with a good story.”
“If I am comfortable with my co-star, then that always shows in my performances.”
“Kabir Khan is a director who goes out of his way to make his actors comfortable. He’s very chilled out. He makes the environment on set very casual and friendly.”
“I decided to be a part of ‘Bajrangi’… because I felt that it tells a very relevant story.”
“I won’t give the credit to ‘good fortune.’ Whatever I have achieved is because of my hard work and passion.”
“I was determined to be an actor and make a name in the industry, and hence, I did.”
“I don’t want to take names, but there are some people who get everything served on a platter. This is a movie, this is your role, and you have to do it. Some people have to strive so hard to reach where they have and want to.”
“I have seen people climbing up and down the ladder of success, and I learnt a lot from them.”
“In my head, I believed even though I am an actor, there was no need to dance. That’s not me.”
“I always thought golf was a game reserved for the rich and the elite… But it’s a misconception. It’s a highly technical game, and it’s a game that you can play and master alone. You require sharp skills for it, and you can play the game alone.”
“I grew fond of acting rather late. And that was because I was not getting any job. I had a few friends in Delhi who were associated with theater. They took me to see some plays in Delhi and Baroda. That led me to believe the I could also act. And it was after that I joined National School of Drama in 1993.”
“Prior to joining NSD, I was briefly associated with a small theater group in Delhi called Sakshi. Saurabh Shukla, Manoj Bapayee were my seniors in that group. I performed a few supporting roles in Sakshi plays.”
“At NSD, I had an amazing experience learning everything from stagecraft to western drama and Shakespeare, Maxim Gorky, Anton Chekov.”
“The film industry is mostly about unidimensional characters.”
“I was shooting for ‘Kahaani’ and ‘GOW’ back to back. I was in a village on work, where a man extended a paper to me. For a minute I thought he wanted another actor’s autograph. I looked back and forth, but there was no one. That was quite an experience.”
“Often when I feel I am reaching a saturation point in my performances, I think of coming back to NSD and attending workshops.”
“Looks is a matter of perception. At Cannes, Europeans think I am good looking, while in India, I am not.”
“’Freaky Ali’ is not a heavy film. It’s a simple but inspiring film. It will inspire those who want to go from zero to hundred. People who have made an effort to achieve success from nothing will be able to connect to the character.”
“I don’t understand what A grade commercial cinema is. If you are talking about box office success, mine are A+ then!”
“You will never see me dancing around the trees, chasing a heroine; I will never do films, no matter what the budget, for the heck of it.”
“If I am expected to play a dancer, I will learn dancing but won’t do the random, meaningless dancing.”
“I was fortunate enough to get an author-backed role in Aamir Khan starrer ‘Talash.’”
“Only heroes get stereotyped. As they do the same kind of roles again and again.”
“I am doing characters that have so many layers. And I am very lucky that I show a lot of variety.”
“I am quite looking forward to working with Shah Rukh Khan.”
“The Indian audience is getting exposed to world cinema and realising the power of unique plots and distinct characters.”
“I am ably balancing big and small films. With every big film I do, I try to take up films that are high on content and small on budget.”
“My experience has offered me the sensibility that encourages me to try newer characters.”
“Commercial hit films such as ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan,’ ‘Talaash,’ and ‘Kick’ had big superstars to sell them; that may not have been the case if it were just me.”
“I do big films just to experience personal satisfaction.”
“I have done theatre, and I enjoy the process of smaller films a lot more. When I do such films, there are certain things which I get to do which are untapped. The scenes give me the liberty to play and mould the character in accordance to the director’s mindset.”
“In ‘Haraamkhor,’ I have explored a few things which I wouldn’t have been able to do in bigger films. The process of shooting this film was so organic that it enhanced me as an actor and an artiste.”
“I prefer if friends come over to my office and we talk our heart out over a cup of coffee. I feel that no one talks freely at industry bashes. Everyone has to behave in a certain way, and I think no one is real there. We can’t have heart-to-heart conversations, and I start feeling uncomfortable at such dos.”
“I have never thought about creating an image for myself in Bollywood. I am an actor and just want to experiment with roles. I am ready to do all type of roles.”
“I don’t want to build any image for myself. I don’t want people to say, ‘He does only a certain type of role.’ I don’t want only to be the hero of the story. An actor’s weakness is the different roles that he can’t do. But I am keen to grab only those roles as I am here to challenge myself.”
Leave a Reply