“I am looking to do a role that will require me to lose weight. I want to be fitter.”
Rishi Kapoor has no less than seven releases lined up in 2013. From a hip 50- something bachelor in Chashme Baddoor, the veteran actor turns into a menacing Haryanvi policeman Ravikant Phogat in the forthcoming Aurangzeb.
Q. Why do you think actors of your age are getting substantial roles these days? A. There is a huge demand for films but our leading actors work in only one or two films a year. Also, the multiplexes have been attracting a different kind of audience. Lawyers, doctors and engineers who had stopped seeing films in single screens are coming back to the theatres. They are getting to see sensible, intelligent and different cinema. We are catering to this crowd. Q. Is this creatively one of the best phases of your career? A. Yes. It has given me opportuni- ties to reinvent myself as an actor. You see, I was never known for being an actor. It was always like, ‘ He does decent work as a romantic hero’ and I used to be like, ‘ One day, I’ll come back and prove that I’m also a reasonably OK actor.’ I am trying to experiment with my looks and do all kind of roles. I want to stir all kind of emotions in the audience. Q. Tell us a little about your role in Aurangzeb. A. I play a rural Jat policeman who is a very corrupt man. We’ve used Aurangzeb as a metaphor in the film and there’re shades of him in all the characters in the movie. Q. Any memorable anecdotes from the sets? A. When I was introduced to my co- star Prithviraj Sukumaran, I told him that I can’t call him by his name. He asked me, “Sir, what did I do wrong?” I replied, “You have the same name as my grandfather and I never called him by his name. So either I call you grandfather, gramps or dadaji.” We had a great laugh over that. Q. What kind of role would you like to do next? A. I’m looking for a role that will require me to lose weight. Most of my producers tell me to remain the way I am. But I’d like to be fitter. Q. How did it feel working with your son in Besharam? A. What I really liked is that Ranbir is as passionate as I am or my father was about acting. I shared that feeling with Neetu ( Rishi’s wife). I see the fire in him, trying to be different and succeed in his endeavour.