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I’m not here for guest appearances; I’m here for lead parts: Anupam Kher on the way ahead
Actor Anupam Kher’s international career has been developing steadily for a while now. What’s really interesting is that Kher, a veteran of Indian cinema, feels like a “newcomer” in his global projects — one of those, Hotel Mumbai, has premiered at the ongoing Toronto International Film Festival.
Kher says, “The minute you start getting tags like veteran or senior actor, it gives you a certain confidence where you feel like you can do whatever is given to you. But [in the West] I feel different. I’m on alert all the time. All my edges are sharpened. It’s a great feeling. I don’t want to come across like a person who has done a lot of work. I’ll tell you about my career after 25 years. There’s so much to do. No one here calls me ‘sir’, or Mr Kher. Everyone calls me Anupam.”
The actor adds that age isn’t something that determines the roles he is offered. “I feel like a newcomer. I won’t allow other people to decide whether I’m happening or not happening. I’ve done enough work in India and I’m very proud to be called an Indian actor in America. I’m representing my country. But hamare yahan, yeh aadat hoti hai ki ‘Inhone bahut kaam kar liya, ab guest appearances karne ko bol denge.’ But I’m not here for guest appearances; I’m here for lead parts,” states Kher, 63.
His new film has got him one such lead role — it’s a story that has taken a long time to be told, and it’s very close to Kher’s heart. The film is based on the Mumbai terror attacks in Nov 2008, and it was screened to a great response in Toronto. Kher says, “I was waiting for this film to come for a long time. It’s an important film from the point of view of today’s time. It also sort of chronicles the time when we were shocked about 26/11. It’s a tribute to the people of Taj [hotel] and Mumbai. The people working in Taj, they put their lives on the line and saved the guests. Of course, the buzz [around] a possible Oscar nomination is there. But for me, India will tell the world through this film how people dealt with it.”