There is a ‘purdah’ on stage now, feels Neil Bhoopalam
The actor, a ‘professional storyteller’, says people are wary of what they say on the stage
Actor Neil Bhoopalam, who is better known as a theatre actor than a mainstream Bollywood actor, has been in several prominent plays such as Nadir Khan’s A Few Good Men, and Rajat Kapoor’s Hamlet — The Clown Prince. He’s also been part of films such as Shaitan (2011), No One Killed Jessica (2011) and NH10 (2015). Excerpts from an interview:
Do you think theatre, over the years, has evolved in India? Now, there is a purdah, earlier, there was a lot more freedom on what you could say on stage. I think people are wary of what they say on stage. It’s a tad limiting. One needs to be a bit mindful, you can’t just go out and say what you want to say. Maybe that’s where the challenge is, and I think this is how it’s been for a while.
Did you receive any formal training in acting?
No, I learnt it on the job and I continue to learn on the job. I did consider training for a bit but then I was like, I am going to spend so much time zeroing in on where I am going to go study, and when you go away it can be counterproductive at times.
Is there a reason why you stayed away from doing more films? Well, Amitabh Bachchan has spent 50 years in this industry, and by God’s grace, he is still going strong. So, there is no hurry to do a lot of work. The second thing would be, how opportunities come my way. Post Dev D (2009), I saw a rise in ‘hatke’ sort of movies. You didn’t need a star to tell a story. By then, NH10 was out, and that’s when OTT platforms were on the rise. I know how much I need to work per year and you will never find me not doing anything for a whole year.
What are your thoughts on OTT platforms?
The phone is a small device but it is a super computer. People have an insatiable appetite to hear stories, and I am very thankful that I’m a storyteller. It doesn’t matter whether you’re putting up a show on stage or acting in a film, or you’re doing a web series or television. As an actor, I’ll act and I’ll perform, and I envision a career which will keep crossing all these mediums.
Which medium do you enjoy the most?
Each one has its own rhythm of performance. Film is really enjoyable because you do three minutes of actual footage everyday. OTT and web shows are fun because the stories are ones you won’t say in a two-hour format. I wouldn’t say it’s tiring but it’s a fair amount of work in a shorter span of time.
Do you think there is “good writing” happening on the web?
We’ve got quite a gambit of stories. A lot of people are also adapting novels, that’s a trend and we are seeing a lot of literature coming to the fore. I have no complaints with the kind of writing that is happening. There are many more women writers today.
What are you currently working on?
One’s a web show, other is a film based on the life of fashion designer Masaba Gupta. I am also working on the second season of a web show.