Satish Kaushik: I Am Doing More Work Now Than I Did In My 20s

Actor Satish Kaushik made his acting debut with 1983 classic 'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro' and eventually donned the director's hat with 1993 hit film 'Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja'. He has aced several characters in his long journey in the film industry. Be is Calender in 'Mr India' or Pappu Pager in 'Deewana Mastana', the theatre veteran has never let anything come in the way of entertaining his audience across generations and timelines. Even now,  at the age of 66, he was seen in four projects back-to-back, a feat that even many youngsters achieve to fail. The actor, who has been honoured with several awards for his performances, says that his enthusiasm on sets is still of a 20-year-old.

Kaushik's was recently seen in 'Bloody Brothers', 'Sharmaji Namkeen', 'Guilty Minds' and Netflix film 'Thar'.

Talking about working so much even at the age of 66, he tells us, "I don’t measure my career with my age but the enthusiasm that I have towards my work is of a 20-year-old. I still go on sets with as much zest, energy and eagerness to learn as I have always did. But currently I am doing much more work than I did even in my 20s. So, it indeed is a nice feeling to be able to get those opportunities and I can promise that my excitement for my work will only grow. Hopefully, even after the next 20 years I will be working as much and in as many diverse roles like I am getting to do today."

Kaushik's rendezvous with acting was never limited to just the silver screen. In his dynamic body of work, the much-respected veteran has also done several television shows after finishing his education from National School of Drama and Film and Television Institute Of India. 

He still calls, getting diverse roles a 'privilege'. 

"As excited as I am about getting to do all these diverse roles...I consider it as a privilege as well. This is one of the best phases of my career and to see filmmakers put their faith in me with such diverse characters, it is like a testament to the work I have done over the years. And if the audience has been impressed by my versatility in these four projects, I just want to tell them to brace themselves as there are a lot more interesting characters to come this year from my side," he says.

The actor is now exploring the medium of OTT with enthusiasm and calls this a great phase of his career.

"This is one of the best phases of my career. The Hindi film industry itself has evolved a lot over the last few years. And with the advent of OTT, the number of opportunities are ample for any artist. I am getting to entertain my audience on the big screen as well as the digital screen, and not only that I am doing it from the front as well as from behind the camera. 

He adds,"'Kaagaz' marked my return to direction after so many years but the audience’s and the industry’s love was still the same for me. I received laurels for it and even got a National Award for my Haryanvi film, 'Chhoriyan Chhoron Se Kam Nahi Hoti'. I couldn’t have asked for more. This phase is too special for me and I am enjoying every moment of it."