“I was very bad at marketing myself and being an introvert, I could not push myself as was required”

GUFI PAINTAL tells JYOTHI VENKATESH in this exclusive e mail interview for bollyy.com and Mayapuri that it is ironical that Corona like curfew happened when Mahabharat was first telecast in 1988 and now Mahabharat is being telecast during the Corona pandemic.

Is it true that you bagged the offer to play Shakuni Mama in Mahabharat only because you were an assistant director for the serial?

No it's not true. As casting Director I had given my choices for the role of Shakuni but they wanted me to play the character because I had played a British called Metcalf, the resident of Delhi in 1857 in their serial "Bahadur Shah Zafar" the last Mughal king of India, and they were so impressed with my performance that they themselves decided in my favor to play the cunning Shakuni. The last Mughal King Zafar was portrayed by one and only great Dada Muni, Ashok Kumar ji.

Which were the other films and TV serials in which you had acted before Mahabharat?

Dimple, Des Pardes, Aafat, Qaid, Kranti, Abdullah, Burning Train, Aaj Ki Aawaz were the films while Laddoo Singh Taxi Wala, Darpan, Bahadur Shah Zafar and a few more films and TV shows which I can't remember now

You could have ended up as the main star villain in films after Mahabharat. What went wrong?

Yes I did a few films after Mahabharat, first being Manmohan Desai's Anmol as villain with Rishi Kapoor, Maidan –E- Jung, Suhaag, etc but was also yet an employee with BR Films hence people were shy or wary to take me and frankly I was very bad at marketing myself and being an introvert, I could not push myself as was required.

How many films and serials have you directed till date?

I have directed 3 films after coming out of BR. They were Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Mahatari and Kangana. I had also directed Ser Pe Sawa Ser, Ek Se Badhkar Ek, Chunni, some episodes of Bahadur Shah Zafar, Sauda, Kanoon, Maharana Pratap, Akbar Birbal and  Kavita. Apart from these, I have also directed many commercials.

Which are your five best TV serials till date?

Bahadur Shah Zafar, Mahabharat, Sauda, Kanyadaan and Chunni.

Which are your five best films till date?

Maidan-E-Jung, Suhaag, Kal ki Awaaz, Anmol and Pani Kum Chàai.

Both you and your younger brother Paintal were in the cast of Mahabharat. Have you both acted in any other TV serial or film after or before Mahabharat?

Yes. My younger brother Kanwarjeet Paintal and I had acted together in the serial Laddoo Singh Taxiwala as well as films like Dimple, Kranti and Des Pardes.

Who are the directors in your wish list as an actor?

My all time favorite directors were veterans like Raj Kapoor, Guru Dutt and Hrishikesh Mukherjee. Today among the directors who are in my wish list are Manoj Kumar,Gulzar, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Raj Kumar Hirani, Karan Johar , Zoya Akhtar and Vishal Bhardwaj.

You had a good chemistry with Puneet Issar as Shakuni and Duryodhan in Mahabharat. Yet why did you not act in his film Garv The Pride?

Yes, at that time even I felt bad that I did not figure in the star cast but then when I started working on the play Mahabharat, the Epic tale, Puneet told me that he wanted me to be in his film Garv The Pride but didn't have any suitable character for me in Garv. I have no hard feelings for me. He too can claim that I didn't think of him in my films as well.

What attracted you to acting in the first place?

As a small boy only I always dreamt of being an actor but got the chance very late in life but thankfully I have survived.

How were B.R. Chopra and Ravi Chopra as directors of Mahabharat?

Both were directors par excellence. Both had great depths to see things beyond imagination and with conviction. The result shows it all with record breaking viewership and a massive following after even 32 years. They had great sense of story narration and honesty in making. It was a rare combination of entertainment and business genius. Corona like Curfew happened when Mahabharat was first telecast in 1988 and now Mahabharat has been telecast during the Corona pandemic. They had a brilliant team of writers like Dr. Rahi M Raza and Pt. Narendra Sharma penning this great Epic.

Were you offered a lot of films including regional films after Mahabharat?

Yes, but as I told you could not take much work because I was too committed with the Chopras.

Like Paintal's son Hiten took to acting, did your son Harry also take up acting following in your footsteps?

My son Hiten did try but was not satisfied with the kind of roles as well as fees offered to him.

What has been your growth as an actor till date?

I can't say but yes I've had a very good experience of working with the biggest stalwarts of Indian Cinema and learning bit more everyday but Cinema is like big Ocean and one learns till the end of his life and I feel that learning is a never ending craft .

What has the film and TV industries taught you over the last several years as a person as well as an actor?

It has actually taught me to be a good human, to never over estimate yourself, to make something useful for the society and never ever hurt others.

How happy are you with your journey as an actor?
 Frankly, I am very happy. I thank my stars, my parents and also my seniors for having faith in me. God has given me more than I deserved.

Do you feel that as an actor you have not really been given your due?

Maybe it is true that I have not been exploited to my fullest potential as an actor, but I can't forget that as a nobody in films I got recognition only with my hard work and hunger to learn the craft. I thank God for giving me the prestige and recognition as an actor and a person.

How was your stint with the TV serial Kanoon as Justice Raghunath?

It was very beautiful experience. I had brilliant actors like Sharat Saxena, Pankaj Dheer, Deep Dhillon and Ananth Mahadevan in the star cast with me. It  was an experience which was really different from what I played as Shakuni  It was totally opposite, as I played a real gentleman Judge who was facing a hardcore criminal and I really enjoyed doing it.

Is it true that you used to play the role of Sita in Rameela while serving the Indian army?

Yes, it's true. We used to perform in the jungles, during the camp fires. It was entertainment time for our soldiers when we used to play Ramleela in which I used to play Sita with the available props and bring some joy in otherwise gloomy times.

What are your current projects?

Currently I am playing once again the role of Shakuni Mama in a play called  Mahabharat the Epic Tale, directed and written by Puneet Issar and also a serial called Waris. I am also a movie with the late Rishi Kapoor titled Sharmaji Namkeen in which I play his elder brother.