“I am yet to bag my best role till date though I have put in 50 years” says actor Brij Gopal

Veteran actor BRIJ GOPAL tells JYOTHI VENKATESH in this exclusive interview with bollyy.com and Mayapuri.

Though you are a versatile character artist in Hindi films, you have not reached the top rung. How difficult was it for you to get a break initially?

When I tried to get a break way back in 1973, producers used to feel that I could not act as I was not from the Pune Film Institute. I also had no stint in theatre to supplement me. I was staying as a paying guest with O.P. Goel who was an associate with the late filmmaker O.P. Ralhan.

Did you automatically get launched by O.P. Ralhan?

When I met Ralhansaab, he asked me whether I wanted to be a hero and I told him that I wanted to play the villain, because I wanted to be a actor and not a fighter. Yet O.P. Ralhan saab cast me in his film Paapi as a fighter.

You did not learn acting before you set out to be an actor?

Frankly, I learnt acting during the 40 days when Ralhansaab was shooting for his film Paapi at the R.K. Studios in Chembur and I use to report on the sets each and every day whether I was required or not for the shoot.

I made it a point to observe actors like Sanjeev Kumar, Sunil Dutt, and Danny Denzongpa at work at close quarters.

What did you learn from an actor like Sanjeev Kumar?

Sanjeev Kumar never used to sit on the sets in a chair once he had applied his make-up and was always in his character even when he was not shooting. He preferred to raise his hands and act as if he was tied to the rope. I learned to be in character while on the sets from Sanjeev Kumar.

Were you paid well as an actor when you worked in Paapi?

Though I was contracted for a remuneration of Rs 5000, I did not get it fully but got Rs 10 every time I went to the sets as my conveyance from the production controller Dilbar Ahuja, who was Govinda’s uncle.

How long did you struggle as an actor?

I continued to struggle in gangster’s roles from 1973 till 1985 when I got a break from Mirza Brothers in their film Misaal starring Naseeruddin Shah and Vijayta Pandit. Anupam Kher played the villain in the film, where I played a character instead of being relegated as the fighter.

When did luck embrace you?

Actor Iftekhar’s daughter was my neighbor. One day I got a message on her landline that Nasir Hussan saab was searching for me for a role in his film Nafrat Ki Aandhi since he was impressed by the role of Tyagi that I had played in Misaal. I was asked to meet Nasirsaab at his office, carting a photo of mine.

Did you bag the role when you met Nasirsaab?

Nasirsaab had a look at my photo and flung it towards his son Mansoor Khan and said he did not think I suited the role of the villain they had planned but luckily for me, Mansoor Khan said that he was confident of my caliber to play the villain and prevailed upon his father to sign me on for the film with which he was also making his debut as a director.

I was handed over my first ever cheque in life besides flight tickets to Bangalore for the shoot. The title of the film was changed from Nafrat Ki Aandhi to Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak and the hero was Aamir Khan, son of producer Tahir Hussain

Is it true that you let go of the film Shahanshah for the sake of the Aamir starrer though he was a new boy on the scene?

Tinnu Anand would not let me take a day off and hence I opted for the Aamir Khan film and walked out of Shahanshah. I have no regrets because I was noticed in the film Qayamat Se Qayamat as an actor and Ramgopal Verma saw me in the climax of QSQT and called me after getting nu number from Nasirsaab’s office to offer a role in his film Shiva. Ramu told me that he needed an actor with expressions.

I did and the other films including Indra Kumar’s Beta, Devsaab’s Pyar Ka Tarana, Hum Naujawan and Love At Times Square for which Devsaab took me on my first ever flight to Denmark , followed.

You have never resorted to chamchagiri though characters often have to do chamchagiri to survive. How?

That is because I do not have the word chamchagiri in my dictionary. I have respected each and every person in the industry. My brother is a lawyer.

I had even assisted a practicing senior lawyer but became desperate to leave that job and quit it. My father wanted me to be a doctor and even build a hospital in Lucknow

Which are your five best films as an actor till date?

A handicapped child will always be dear to the father. Among my favorite films are Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, Shiva, Beta, Tariq Shah’s Janamkundali, Koylanchal and Gangajal.

Name the filmmakers who are in your wish list as an actor?

I have learnt what to do and what not to do from each and every director of mine. My favorites are Rajkumar Santoshi, Deepak Shivdasani. I would love to be directed by Karan Johar even if I have just two scenes to my credit as long as they are essential to the plot.

You did not bag a role in Lagaan though Aamir Khan’s first film was with you. Why?

I did meet Aamir as well as Ashutish Gowarikar to ask for a role in Lagaan but unfortunately I was not signed for it, because they felt that I did not suit any character in the film.

You have spent 50 years in the film industry. What has been your approach to life?

I was learning even then and am learning even now. I get excited every time I do a role. I am ready to learn as if I am facing the camera for the first time.

If you ask me whether my potential has been exploited fully, all that I can say is that every creative person feels that he has not got a really good role. With due respect to all my directors till date, I would also say that I am yet to get my best ever role.