‘I decided to mentally start from scratch’

Akshaye Khanna believes that actors are the most helpless artistes in the world. The son of late Bollywood star and politician Vinod Khanna, says that having a family member in the film industry can act as a stepping stone, but success in the showbiz depends upon a lot of other factors.

“An actor is very different from a dancer, singer or a composer. Even after giving their best, actors’ success is dependent on writers, directors, producers, co-stars, editors, cinematographers, most importantly, the audience, as they are the most difficult to please. So, I feel, an actor is the most vulnerable artiste,” says Akshaye.

The 42-year-old, who is best known for his role in Dil Chahta Hai (2001), also won praise for his performance in films such as Border (1997), Taal (1999), Hulchul (2004) and Gandhi, My Father (2007). But after his voiceover role in the animation film, Delhi Safari, in 2012, he stayed away from the big screen for almost three years because of “personal reasons”. Akshaye shares that this phase [of his life] was “torturous”, and he could hardly wait to be back in films. He featured in last year’s Dishoom, starring Varun Dhawan and John Abraham in lead roles.

“When I thought of coming back, there were both nervousness and uncertainty, thinking if I still have it in me. The world is really moving

When I thought of coming back, there were both nervousness and uncertainty, thinking if I still have it in me. AKSHAYE KHANNA, ACTOR

fast, and out of sight means out of mind. So, to deal with the turmoil within, I decided to mentally start from scratch. And my agenda became to work harder and make up for the time lost. And, of course, try my best to get my audience back,” says Akshaye.