“As an actor, I would tell you that make it very difficult so that I can actually give my best to it” ANUPAM KHER

In this exclusive as well as intimate interview for bollyy.com as well as Mayapuri with ANUPAM KHER, he tells JYOTHI VENKATESH that he feels that he still feels that he is still a struggling newcomer

What exactly is your role in the multi starrer film of Rajshri Films titled Uunchai?

I play a character called Om Sharma In the film Uunchai who is the owner of a book shop in old Delhi. He is not only an old fashioned guy but also a little irritable. When things lead him to a point when he is confronted, he discovers his own courage. In essence, Uunchai is a film which revolves around the courage of seniors and the adventure they set out to experience.

Okay, it is almost 35 years since you have been in the film industry since your debut film Saaransh was released. How fruitful has been your journey this far when you look back at your career for the last four decades?

To tell you the truth, I’m really very humbled with the way my journey has progressed over the years, since I basically hail from a very small town and frankly I would confess that both Rajshri which gave me my big break with Saransh and God have been really very kind to me.

What has been your growth as an actor since you are now not only a veteran but also a versatile actor in Bollywood?

Sorry Jyothi. You know me for the last 40 years since I met you to ask me for an interview way back in 1983 when I was making my debut with the same Rajshri’s film Saransh. I would not like to call myself a veteran actor but agree with you if you choose to call me a versatile actor.

Anupam Kher Profile shoot in Hotel Imperial New Delhi.

Why?

That’s because I feel that I am still a struggling newcomer. As an actor, if you ask me what my approach is, I would tell you that I would make it very difficult so that I can actually give my best to it.

Why?

That’s only because though human mind as well as body have immense possibilities, we are capable of exploiting only 25% of that.

ANUPAM KHER

Okay, as far as your part in Uunchai is concerned, to what extent did you depend on your director Sooraj Barjatya, as an actor?

I was at ease because Sooraj Barjatya is the kind of a director who, prepares you to the T to then part especially since he tells you how you have to approach the five scenes before the shot as well as the five scenes after the shot

How was it acting with actors like Amitabh Bachchan, Boman Irani, Danny Denzongpa, Neena Gupta, Sarika and Parineeti Chopra?

Frankly, I should confess that It was indeed a dream team, whether it was Amitji,  Boman, Dannyji,  Neenaji, Parineeta or for that matter Sarikaji. I had the good fortune to act with Amitji as well as Dannyji in films like Hum and Amitji , and I had worked in Sooryavanshi as well as Aakhri Raasta with Amitji.

How was it working with Amitji especially in Uunchai?

I should confess to you that the enthusiasm,  as well as the preparation of Bachchansaab were very infectious.

OK Anupam. Can you please tell me which are the five best roles in your career till date?

It is indeed a very tough question to answer my dear Jyothi. Till date, I have acted in as many as 530 films right from the time I had made my debut way back 40 years ago. After 30 more years, when I try to look back at my career and the number of films that I have done till then, I will be able to tell you which are my best films till then, but not right now.

In what way, do you think Anupam that the entire film industry has changed over the years till date?

I remember when the VHS, video cassettes and the satellite TV came several years ago; people had started predicting that the doomsday was already there for the film industry. Rightly, it is the audience which has changed over the years especially since they have also gone through several upheavals and do not readily accept anything which they feel is actually fake

Do you think that the South Indian films have real content and that is the reason that Hindi films are failing at the box office these days?

All that I can say is that the South Indian films are real though they are all larger than life per se though let me also assert that even as far as Bollywood is concerned, films like Bhool Bhulaiyya as well as The Kashmir Files both have done extremely well at the box office. All that i can say is that whether it is south Indian films or for that matter Bollywood films, if films are not good, they will not do well at all at the box office.

Can you elucidate?
If not with arrogance, I’d rather like to say with great pride that my film like Kashmir Files did extremely well and this year a lot of my films did well and it is Anupam Kher who has made maximum numbers at the box office.

Do you think that it is the content that has changed over the years?

I would rather say that the content was always there in our films. It is actually the phases which keep on coming and it is like saagar manthan which brings about the best changes.

Is it true that since you are busy with your films in Bollywood besides your overseas assignments, your stint in theater as well as your ambitious plans to take up direction have both taken a back seat?

We are all set to stage our plays once again after a long time especially since the pandemic has gone. As far as working on directing a film, I am busy writing the script for a film. Till date, I have directed only one film as well as a short film with Robert de Nero but could not direct more as I was busy with my work abroad

How do you describe yourself?

I am basically a very restless person and I feel that my actual competition is with myself of but the biggest problem is that I have a very high standard for myself and for that I have to work very hard

Do you think that since you are also the instructor of an acting academy, you have to struggle more as an actor?

 Yes. That is because the acting instructor in me is more knowledgeable than the actor in me. This is besides the fact that today unlike 40 years ago; I am actually competing with the newcomers of today.