The bald, strong-willed retired teacher fighting a deceitful, insensitive system in Saaransh (1984). The drunkard of a father in Daddy. The affable father in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. Or Dr Dang, the antagonist, in Karma. He was 29 when he played a 65-year-old in Saaransh. The range speaks of his versatility. Now as jury member of the BAFTA Breakthrough India, actor Anupam Kher has a new role. He tells Lachmi Deb Roy about his long journey on the uneven tracks of the film industry...
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) role: I can’t wait for the world to see the incredible talent we had the privilege of choosing. BAFTA has fascinated me right from the time I did my first English film Bend It Like Beckham. I feel honoured. It is a great learning process.
The journey: Amazing. God has been extremely kind to me. I was a boy from a small town and from a lower middle-class family. Now to become a BAFTA jury member makes me believe that all dreams come true. I never thought that one day I will be working with Robert De Niro and I never thought that my movies will be nominated for Oscars. I did many successful projects because the people in India accepted me and gave me the opportunity to perform. Most importantly, the entertainment industry valued me for my originality and hard work.
Good looks: Looks were never important to me. But sadly, the system pays a lot of importance to it. It was the passion in me and the hunger to perform that made me an actor. For a person who was balding when he was very young to come to Bollywood to become an actor was a huge step those days. I came because I was a drama school gold medallist and I wanted to defy all stereotypes. But, yes, a lot of attention was paid to the way you look. And my question is who decides what is better looking. For me being original and unique is what makes a person attractive.
OTT opportunities: Over-the-top platforms are not only an opportunity for new actors and directors, but also an opportunity for people who were written off… established actors who faded away. It is an opportunity for those seeking a comeback vehicle. The problem in India is that when women cross a certain age and men lose their freshness they become unwanted in the industry. But look at the way Sushmita Sen and Pooja Bhatt reinvented themselves. Talent never fades with age. It gets better and mature.
The OTT platform is a huge job-producer… actors, directors, thousands of technicians, new and old. People got hooked to it because of its flexibility. You don’t need a TV or computer, your mobile phone is good enough. But once we are done with Covid, cinema will return. The joy of watching a movie on the big screen can never go.
Your short film Happy Birthday: I love stories that have a twist in the end. I love Roald Dahl’s stories. Happy Birthday has the same twist and the best thing about short films is the sharpness of the script and how it sends out a message.
As Taj hotel head chef Hemant Oberoi in Hotel Mumbai: It was traumatic because the memory for anybody living in Mumbai during that time was very real. I lost some close friends during 26/11. Sometimes actors have to literally live the trauma for the world to know what the real people have gone through. Otherwise, nobody will know what it is like to be trapped in a hotel with terrorists shooting people down.
Favourite platform: Theatre has an edge over other platforms because it is live performance. No retakes. The palpitation is real and the audience reaction is instant. The joy of theatre is the on-the-spot performance. Theatre makes you alert. I consider myself lucky because I did a variety of roles in television, theatres and cinema. I would love to return to theatre, but I can’t at the moment because of the pandemic.
Not losing hope: Well, hope is the most important four-letter word. You give up hope, you give up living. You are simply existing then.
