‘HOPE FOR A WARM HUG FROM DELHI’
Actor Tiku Talsania, who calls theatre his first love, says he enjoys doing comedy projects
From a newspaper editor in Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin (1991) to a principal in Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya (1998), Tiku Talsania’s hilarious portrayals in films are etched on his fans’ hearts forever. The actor says that he thoroughly enjoyed himself playing these parts.
“It was a fantastic time that I had. The comic timing is such a thing that [if] it comes to you naturally, people would wait for you to come on the screen and they would start laughing. And, that’s what happened to me. It takes a period of time and experience. I loved every moment, and I still love every moment that I go through with comedy,” says Talsania, a popular figure in the Gujarati theatre scene as well. You love the work that you do, and also get paid for it. How cool is that, right? That’s exactly what the actor loves about his profession. “This is the best motivation a person can ever have. I feel an actor
I feel an actor never dies. He lives on in the hearts of people. I’d like to die with my shoes on at some set or some theatre stage with the makeup on.
TIKU TALSANIA ACTOR
never dies. He lives on in the hearts of people. I would like to die with my shoes on at some set or some theatre stage with the makeup on. I love to do theatre; it’s my first love,” laughs Talsania, who is in the Capital for a Hindi play. “I hope Delhi receives me with a warm hug in this cold weather,” he says.
With many successful TV shows to his credit, Talsania says that a lot has changed over the years. “Initially, it would take about five to seven days [to shoot] for one episode. Now, we shoot one episode a day. In films, too, everything has become fast.. People want instant humour. It’s a time of instant things, [whether it’s] humour, coffee, or relationships,” says the actor.
Ask him if a popular face attracts crowds more than the quality of the play, and he replies, “A prominent figure will attract crowd, too. But if the play is nice and the comedy is of class, they will throng to the theatre to see it.”
The actor, who has his hands full with a couple of Hindi, Gujarati, and Marathi films, says, “I am enjoying life to the fullest and living life king size.”
With the explosion of OTT space in India, Talsania believes that the audience wants “entertainment in their hands”. “I shall be doing a few web shows soon. It’s a good thing that has given work to actors. But, I feel... people are so busy in their life, they only want entertainment in their phones now. Whenever you travel, people are busy looking down at their phones... I feel that’s not right. Sometimes when you get a chance, put your phone down, look at the person next to you and ask them how their day was,” Talsania says.