FILMS DO NOT INTEREST NYSA RIGHT NOW: AJAY

Fresh off the success of Raid, actor Ajay Devgn talks about films, and how his daughter is a harsh critic

After his debut film, Phool Aur Kaante in 1991, Ajay Devgn came to be known as an action hero. That tag subsequently changed to a romantic hero, an intense actor and finally, he established himself as a reliable name in the comedy genre as well. The actor says that he feels blessed to have had the opportunity to work in multiple genres and not get typecast. Excerpts from an interview:

You have only been a part of commercial films in the last couple of years. Do you not get offers for niche films anymore?

I have always done niche films, which people have started doing only now. In the ’90s, when I started my career, I was the only one who was doing niche films. I did Takshak (1999), Raincoat (2004), Zakhm (1998), and so many others. I have always believed in niche films. It is not niche anymore because it has become regular, but that time people used to call it parallel cinema. I have learnt a lot out of it and now, good people are doing it.

You started out as an action hero with Phool Aur Kaante. Was that a conscious move, to be known for action?

No. That just happened. If you see Phool Aur Kaante, it was not just an action film. It had great music; good performances and a good emotional connect. But people started talking about me because of the bike stunt and all that. I guess that happened because nobody had done a stunt like that until then. But then slowly that changed and then I got tagged as an intense actor and then finally, comedy happened. I think I was lucky to have been offered so many different genres because people keep struggling to break an image. What’s even better is that all of them worked. So now, I can keep rotating with genres and enjoying myself.

What about your daughter Nysa? Is she interested in acting?

No. She doesn’t talk about films at all. She is studying in Singapore and she is very happy. Though she keeps talking about what she wants to do in life, right now films do not interest her. It’s honestly, her choice. And I respect that. But she is a harsh critic. I don’t remember her praising me in anything (laughs).

Do you think that increasingly, it has become important to make films that also give out a social message?

Not at all. A film has to entertain and that’s the most important criteria according to me. When we watch Hollywood films, how many films do we see having a social message? How many films with a social message do we anyway watch?

Have you given a thought to working on the digital medium?

We are working on a few things. As an actor, I haven’t been offered anything exciting as of now. But if I hear anything that is really interesting, I might be open to it. A lot of celebrities think social media is increasingly bringing with it intense Social media has its own plus and minus points but it is a public platform and you can’t do anything about it. Though you may not agree with all that happens, you have to accept it because there is no choice. The world also operates on the mindset that we want to really get into other people’s lives to see what’s dirty. And that’s how a conversation starts too. And this is human tendency. Which is why a show like Big Boss works.

PHOTO: JITU SAVLANI

PHOTO: INSTAGRAM/KAJOL Ajay Devgn with wife, actor Kajol and kids, Nysa and Yug. He says his daughter doesn’t talk about films at all