In an exclusive interview with Lehren Retro, Ronit Roy delves into his journey, describing how he faced setbacks and emerged as the 'TV ka Amitabh Bachchan.let's watch Ronit Roy's Bold, Tell-All Interview.
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00:00:00 I was shocked because when I came out, somebody had told me that story and I felt like Rajesh Khanna sahib
00:00:06 because my car was covered in lipstick.
00:00:09 At one point of time in my career, people started calling me TV Kamita Bachchan.
00:00:16 Nobody called me Mir, they would call me 'Tulsi Chaan Navra'.
00:00:19 You know, the reason why I am not a superstar today is because of my own mistakes.
00:00:25 Ronet, I have known you since the days you were with Subhash Ghai.
00:00:34 That's how long back we go.
00:00:36 Yes, that was when you were young and I was a kid.
00:00:40 Something like that, yes.
00:00:42 So, Subhash ji of course, he has been a blessing in my life.
00:00:49 And I was kind of the giveaway. I was given away by my father to him.
00:00:57 Saying, please take him away from here. Teach him something, something will be made in life.
00:01:03 Because, you know, I was in a small town called Ahmedabad in Gujarat.
00:01:08 I used to have slightly like, not jet black hair, you know, slightly not blonde, brown but kind of not jet black.
00:01:18 And long hair till my shoulders.
00:01:21 And we used to be riding motorcycles and the girls and you know that kind of thing.
00:01:28 So, very popular among the girls.
00:01:31 Something that continues to this day.
00:01:35 Thank God for that.
00:01:37 So, you know, the term that they used to use for people like, boys like me was,
00:01:46 they used to address you like, hey, hero. You know, when you go to a shop and they would say, kya hero?
00:01:54 So, that constant hero, hero, hero, hero, I was like, chalo, hero bante hain yaar.
00:02:00 So, when I told my dad, my dad was like, you got to be kidding me yaar.
00:02:05 Parad likh lo. So, I did my, my father said, so I did my engineering.
00:02:12 Not that I was very honestly interested in becoming an engineer. It was never really my thing.
00:02:20 Toh phir unko, I think samajh mein aaya gaya tha, fathers understand no.
00:02:26 Inclination of the children. -Haan. So, he kind of knew, kya this guy is not going to, aisa ke, le jao isko le jao.
00:02:33 So, he told Subhash ji, ki yeh le jao hai. -Kaam pe lagao. And of course, I came here and then I lived with Subhash ji for a long time.
00:02:44 I lived by myself in, because when I came here, nobody was here. -Right. -They were all out of town for almost a month or so.
00:02:53 So, those, you know, those small lodges near Bandra station, I lived in them. There are these very nice dhabas in and around Bandra station where I used to eat.
00:03:06 National. -National, national, exactly. Ya, ya, national. So, right opposite National used to be a boarding house.
00:03:14 I lived there and then, of course, they came back, I moved in there and for the longest time, I lived with him.
00:03:21 So, you were a house guest with him? -I was a house guest all the way from 86 to around 3-4 years. -Okay.
00:03:30 So, that's the time I knew you. -That's the time. You still know me. That's the time we got to know each other. -Yes, absolutely. Ya, ya.
00:03:37 That's right. -I think Subhash ji maybe told them or something. They used to make me work very hard. -Okay.
00:03:44 Ya, like places like this where you are on the second floor, that Chittagoot bungalow in Juhu, we were shooting on the second floor and you tell me,
00:03:52 "Ja, nicha se jaya ke HMI liya." So, I am like, okay. So, I would take the HMI all the way up and they said, "Kitna late karta hai, nahi chahiye, ja nicha rak de wapas."
00:04:00 Okay, okay. -So, like that. So, of course, at that time I didn't understand, you know, like, kyu bekaari ki meraat kya aare ho?
00:04:08 But were you always fit even at that time? You were in your twenties. -Ya, ya, ya. I was… Of course, I choose to believe that right now I am my fittest ever in life.
00:04:20 Okay. At the age of 58? -At the age of 58. -Okay. -I give a lot of importance to my health, my body, my mind, my spirit.
00:04:31 So, fitness is not just about having dole shona. -Right. -It's about all round fitness. And I need to be my fittest right now because my daughter is 18, my son is 16.
00:04:42 They are embarking on their life and, you know, it's, my life is about them now. -Okay. -So, you know, when you have to address the lives of teenagers,
00:04:56 you can't be dull minded, you can't be non-receptive, you can't be non-reactive. You have to be all those things.
00:05:03 So, we go back to Subhashji and to Mansoor. You were assisting Mansoor and Sanjeev Sharma when they were making their commercials?
00:05:13 Ya, so, more assisting Sanjeev than Mansoor because Mansoor was not so active in the company.
00:05:22 Sanjeev used to direct the ads. So, of course, that, ya, like I was saying, when I joined Mukta Arts, it was like,
00:05:32 I did the math and I said, yeh, mein toh abhi number bhi nahi aaya mera ki mujhe yeh AD bole.
00:05:40 Par yeh number aayega, it used to take about one and a half years to make a film in that time. -Right. -About two years for the film to release.
00:05:47 Toh I said, chhe assistant pehle se hai. Two years per grow, growth.
00:05:55 Toh bila 12 saal toh yeh hi ho gaye. -Correct. Toh woh 12 years to become… -Ya, 12 years to become like a first or a chief.
00:06:02 And then you wait and then you, you know, you write a script and then, so, it's a 15-16 year game. -Correct.
00:06:10 And I was in a hurry. I didn't have the time. So, by that time, that hero and that actor had gone on to the back burner.
00:06:19 I had gotten very immersed, very invested in behind the camera. So, that's when I said, ki boss, we need to learn quickly.
00:06:31 So, then Subhaji said, you know, why don't you do advertising films because, you know, every, all these people they make like one or two films a month.
00:06:38 So, you learn faster. So, I said, great idea. And that's how I landed up there. -Okay. And did you learn? -Ya, ya, ya.
00:06:47 Tremendous, tremendous growth. And because of Sanjeev. Of course, the first four, five months were like,
00:06:57 bus leke jao, Banda station, my favourite place. Waha courier wala hota tha mara, waha tapes courier karke aao.
00:07:05 Phir waha jao, waha se film leke aao. Phir wo bus pakro, lab jao, lab mein wait karo.
00:07:12 Abhi kher, unfortunately, there is no film anymore. But it used to be a wonderful process, you know.
00:07:18 Then get it printed and then bring the prints to the office. -Right. -Take the prints to the editing room and then sit there,
00:07:25 wait there, watch the process, watch it unfold and then finally, you know, go with Sanjeev.
00:07:30 And just sit quietly in the room, in the corner while he was presenting to, used to do a lot of work with Ogilvy and Mehtar.
00:07:39 It used to be Ogilvy, Benson and Mehtar at that time, OBM. -Ya, ya, OBM. -So, so, ya, I loved that process.
00:07:48 And how did Jaan Tere Naam come? That's when you jumped to become the director. -So, I am going to finish that link there.
00:07:56 So, that you have the complete story and it makes sense. So, that hero kind of, you know, I mean, the way you are,
00:08:04 long hair and you know, it doesn't leave you. So, even in the edit room, I would say, "Arey, hero aagaya, arey, hero aagaya.
00:08:10 Arey, hero aaj kya edit karna hai." And so on and so forth. So, Sanjeev actually, maybe it happened by chance.
00:08:18 Maybe. I like to believe that Sanjeev was instrumental in instigating my growth. Somehow, somebody would leave.
00:08:31 You know, the production guy would leave. Production guy left first. He said, "Arey, yeh ho gaya kya karein.
00:08:38 Koi baat nahi, Raunit hai na, Raunit kar lega. Raunit kar lega na tu?" "Haan, sir, kar lunga."
00:08:43 He said, "Come on, now, next film, he is doing the entire production." So, I got straight into production.
00:08:48 Then our post-production guy left. And I was already used to the gamut of taking everything, the delivery boy, like you were saying.
00:08:57 And I knew everybody. So, he said, "Oh, now, damn, now we are in production, this guy has left.
00:09:04 How are you going to do it? And who is going to do post-produce this film?" "Arey, Raunit hai na, Raunit kar lega.
00:09:11 Raunit kar lega na tu?" "Haan, sir, main kar lunga." So, and then I remember, still that time, this was, I mean, some maybe 30-35 years back.
00:09:23 In, we had this small office in Chuhin village, just before Chuhin village, at the beginning of Chuhin village.
00:09:33 In Bandra. -Haan, in Bandra. In Khar, actually. And Sanjeev was sitting on his desk and I was called inside.
00:09:40 And I went in and he said, "Raunit, are you ready?" I said, "Ready for what, sir?" He said, "I want you to edit this film."
00:09:49 I was like, I said, "Okay, I will do it." And he was like, "Don't worry, it's fairly simple. I will explain to you what to do.
00:09:58 And you go and edit the film and you post-produce it completely. But I want you to edit it. I want to see how you edit it."
00:10:04 So, I did that and something worked. So, I became an editor. Then I moved to…
00:10:12 So, while I was with Sanjeev, because of the hero factor, "Arey, hero, ek ad hai, karega?"
00:10:22 I said, "No, na. Sabkoch karooga." I mean, it's extra money, right? It's extra money. You are not auditioning or anything.
00:10:31 You are just saying, "Acha, iska ek shot le lo, bhej do. Ogadar main jahan bhi bhejne hain, leave it to them."
00:10:37 And it would get okay. And then I moved up in life. I met Kunal Kapoor who offered me like a…
00:10:45 This was two years after editing for… -Kunal Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor sir. -Ji, ji, ji. I started editing for him as an independent editor.
00:10:54 And then he would do the same thing, "Ranit, would you like to do this commercial?" I said, "Of course, sir. I would love to do the commercial."
00:11:03 I remember I had shot for Sanjeev Sharma this commercial called, a shampoo commercial called Sunny Aarne Ka Shampoo.
00:11:15 And I was also the costume designer. I not only designed the girls, the leading ladies costume, I also went to Hale Road and got it stitched.
00:11:26 So, I had contributed a lot to that. And Deepak ji, Deepak Balraj saw that commercial and I was editing at Mukta.
00:11:38 I think it was Saudagar. I was doing some work on Saudagar. And Prashant Vinod who were Deepak Balraj's editor,
00:11:47 they said, "Hey, you know, Deepak ji was missing you, he was looking for you." I said, "Did you guys lose your jobs?"
00:11:56 -You thought he has an editor? -Yes. So, I said, "I am editing, so, I mean, he already has editors, why is he calling me?"
00:12:04 So, anyway, I called him and… It was the time of our landline. I called him and he said, "Come tomorrow morning."
00:12:12 I said, "Go." So, I went, I went and I saw him and he was… The room to his living room was, the door to his living room was open.
00:12:20 And he was sitting there. So, I went and I said, "Good morning, sir." And he looked at me like, he said, "Yes?"
00:12:28 I said, "Sir, you called me?" And he thought and he said, "No. Who are you?" I said, "Sir, my name is Ronit Roy."
00:12:37 And he was like, "Oh, wait, wait, wait." And he played that ad for me. So, he said, "This is you?"
00:12:45 So, he said that because I was editing. And editing ka khana uss time pe hota tha, Manchurian rice and Manchurian whatever.
00:12:55 That's your standard. Or Manchurian noodles and Manchurian whatever. Hakka noodles and… So, that was standard.
00:13:02 So, my hair was longer and I was like, you know, my tummy was… I was, I had become an editor. So, he said,
00:13:13 "I am doing a film and I want to cast you as a hero. And I give you three months. If you can come back to this."
00:13:21 -Come back to looking like this. -Yeah. -Okay. -I will cast you. So, three months I lived only on chicken soup.
00:13:28 -Acha. -Yeah, I used to be non-veg at that time. -Okay. -So, three months. For breakfast, lunch and dinner.
00:13:35 Only chicken soup. And then I used to run roughly around 15-16 kilometers a day.
00:13:42 7-8 kilometers in the morning and 7-8 kilometers in the evening. -Okay. -So, and I lost the weight.
00:13:50 And then Jaan Teri Naam happened.
00:13:58 Jaan Teri Naam.
00:14:21 You were a fantastic dancer in that film. Jaan Teri Naam, I mean, we remember the dances you did.
00:14:32 It was so fantastic. -People say that. But I was, yeah, I did what they told me to do.
00:14:40 But, you know, in retrospect, I think that if I had kind of, like, how our actors now, they learn from Shyamak
00:14:48 and, you know, at that time we didn't have so much. But, you know, if I had learnt some kind of dancing,
00:14:55 you know, in retrospect, I think that would have been better. -Okay. -Yeah. -Things you just did because they just came to you.
00:15:03 It's not like you… -Life has, yeah, life has just happened to me. -Right. -And life has happened to me wonderfully.
00:15:09 I think back now, all the mistakes I have made, I remember all my mistakes. And I, every day of my life, I wake up thanking God.
00:15:22 I have done some very dangerous things in my life. And I have got away without a scratch.
00:15:28 You said, you talked about a lot of mistakes that you made, some which were dangerous. Tell us one.
00:15:34 It's not something that I would like the people to know. Because it's something that happened way back, you know, in my…
00:15:49 Okay, let's just, if you are insisting, let's just talk about my drinking. -Okay. -Okay? Now, same thing happened, what we are talking about.
00:16:00 I, you know, the, my, I was shocked because when I came out, somebody had told me that story and I felt like Rajesh Khanna saab.
00:16:11 Because my car was covered in lipstick. And, you know, things like that would happen to me every day after Janatirannam.
00:16:20 And it was, that is the time when you need people who have been there and who have done that to ground you.
00:16:30 You know, people to talk sense into you. I have forever been a lone warrior. -Okay. -You know, and even when I have had people,
00:16:38 they are, have been the other type, you know. So, you know, that's, the reason why I am not a superstar today is because of my own mistakes.
00:16:49 Because when I should be, what I should, what I am doing now, I should have been doing at that time when success came to me.
00:16:56 And success is not what you have but what you do with what you have. So, that was the time for me to kind of, you know,
00:17:05 hone myself, work on myself. But I didn't. -So, would you look back at that phase after Janatirannam,
00:17:13 when you had a very rough time for about nine years almost, would you look back at that as a period which was
00:17:20 frustrating because you made mistakes but you learnt from them ultimately?
00:17:25 Yeah. But I would not change it. -Because you learnt from it ultimately. -Because, yeah, because again, I mean, that,
00:17:34 who knows, if, you know, that period was not there, maybe I would not be here where I am today.
00:17:40 Maybe I would not be with, I would not have the family that I have today. So, maybe I would become, I would have become
00:17:48 very money minded and, you know, like that and, you know, non-emotional and ruthless. Who knows? We don't know all that.
00:17:56 So, what were the mistakes you think you made at that time when your films were not doing well and those nine years of frustration?
00:18:04 I like the way you are insisting on the mistakes. -Fourteen films that were unreleased. I mean, so many, so many, so many things went wrong.
00:18:13 One was the drinking, you said. One you said you are not able to handle your success. -Correct. No, they, I didn't understand the success.
00:18:24 It kind of, I kind of said, "Acha, abhi toh, hey, hero, hey, hero, abhi lo, main hero ban gaya." I never thought it would end. -So soon.
00:18:34 Yeah, I thought it was perpetual, ki abhi toh main ban gaya hoon. Toh abhi main chalta hi rahunga. -Right. -But that's not the case.
00:18:40 Because every step you take is a different, is a new step. -Yes. -And you have to be very careful before you take that step.
00:18:47 So, I mean, again, I am saying that I am blessed to be here and you know, lot of things, life has happened to me.
00:18:54 The good also has happened to me. The bad has also happened to me. And I have dealt with both of them very nicely in my life.
00:19:03 But yeah, I mean, you know, when you should be… So, it's not just the drinking, no? So, when you are drinking,
00:19:13 you make a host of other mistakes. You know, okay, one mistake I have never made is that I have never been late for a shoot.
00:19:22 I have always been on time. That's my trump card. I am never late anywhere. But you are, you have reached on time.
00:19:30 But you don't have your faculties around you because you have been drinking till four hours before. And you haven't slept.
00:19:37 And your eyes are bulging and you are looking like, you know, God knows you are not supposed to look like that.
00:19:43 There is a responsibility upon you. People love you. They come all the way to the theatre to see you.
00:19:49 It's your responsibility to give back to them. -To look your best. -To look your best. To be your best. -Yes.
00:19:55 Every day to be the better version of yourself. Aur yaha toh, you know, life is going by in a dizzy.
00:20:01 And you are going through work half-hearted. You, half the things you are processing, half the things you are not processing.
00:20:08 You don't know what's going on. Which is directionless. -Yeah. -You know, you are just there. -So, how did you survive those nine years?
00:20:15 Until Mr. Bajaj happened of course. But how did you survive? Did your brother help you? Because he also actually had just come and…
00:20:24 Nobody helped me. -Okay. -Nobody helped me. Nobody came to me saying that, chal, ab bahut ho gaya.
00:20:32 Sit, let's figure this out. Nobody came to me saying that, arey, is there food to eat in your house?
00:20:39 Do you have a house? I didn't even have a house for the longest time. I was living in a car.
00:20:44 Yeah, I had one, I had one baksa, nice big suitcase, Samsonite I remember. And it used to be in the boot of my car.
00:20:51 All my clothes were in it. Because I had to leave the place where I was living and I didn't have money to pay rent.
00:20:56 Toh kido jaayeg aadmi? I can't go back to somebody's house and say, arey, please let me stay here.
00:21:02 You couldn't have gone back to somebody's house and said, your house guest is back. -It's shameful yaar. It's shameful no?
00:21:08 You can't. And I am not the person who will go to a friend's house and say, arey, meko tere hain na hai.
00:21:13 I have too much of honour and pride for that. -That's right. -Can't do that. -Self-respect. -I said, gaad hi mein.
00:21:19 So, I, you know, on and off, all those hotels in Juhu, I used to use the public laboratories to brush
00:21:28 and kind of freshen up before I went to the shoot. And we didn't have vanities at that time. -Yes.
00:21:34 So, we used to shoot in like schools and stuff like that, then they would have, you know, public laboratories.
00:21:41 They would organise, balti, balti laao, paani laao, yaar, naahe thoda, you know, mal-mal banaye. So, it was tough.
00:21:49 And then, that's why I really, I have a very good laugh when the media, I mean, not anymore. But at that time, they would very intelligently ask me,
00:22:01 So, Rolitzer, tell us, what brought about this transition from film to television? It must have been very difficult for you to come down
00:22:10 to television. -Like, dude, I was completely… -It was work. -No, I was completely unemployed. I had nothing.
00:22:18 So, television was actually a blessing, a boon to me. Somebody who has no work at all, somebody who is starving.
00:22:27 So, it was not even a choice. It was like, ke, arey, thank you God for this. -Like a door open. -Naa, ya.
00:22:35 So, when Ekta called you, were you surprised? -Ekta didn't call me. -Achha, Ekta didn't call you. -I didn't meet.
00:22:42 I started working for Balaji in 2000. And we only heard of Ekta. Because she was Ekta Kapoor, right? I mean, she is still Ekta Kapoor. -Ya.
00:22:52 So, there was no meeting her. So, you are hired by, I mean, of course, she has okayed you. You know, because without her okay,
00:23:00 there is not even a feather would move that time. So, you know that she has okayed you, but you can't meet her.
00:23:08 So, I think, 2000, I started working erratically for Balaji. They were doing a show, Onzi,
00:23:18 where I was doing a character role. Then 2000, and it got canned. 2001, that show came back, Onzi.
00:23:31 Then they called me back. Then we started shooting full fledged for that. And in 2002, in, so, that was after one year of working with Balaji,
00:23:43 2002, July, beginning of July, they said there is this role, Nivedita Basu.
00:23:54 She said, there is this role, Ekta has told you to do it. So, it's just there. Ekta ne bola hai tumko karna hai. Khatam tumha.
00:24:04 I said, ya, of course. They said, but it's just like a two, three month role. But you have to do it.
00:24:10 And you have to colour your hair white. I said, I will do it. Give me work and I will do it. So…
00:24:17 -Tab tak dimaag thekhaane pe aa gayi thi? -Haan, haan. By that time, by that time, I was like,
00:24:24 that was what I did on television at that time, in those ten years. I don't think any actor can do.
00:24:32 Ya, may be there are a couple of actors who can do. -You are talking about doing that crazy double shifts which went on to 24 hour shifts.
00:24:39 -Ya, I would go home. So, I started, let's say, technically in 2000, but non-technically main work started in 2001.
00:24:48 2002 Bajaj started. So, I had two shows with Balaji then. In July, my entry was in July.
00:24:55 You know, on October, on the 11th was my entry into Kyuki. -Okay. -From then on, on my birthday.
00:25:02 From then on, for the next ten years, I have done three shows. I mean, if you look at my filmography,
00:25:10 I have done three shows every year for Balaji. -Right. -So, it was the Zee show and let's just say Kasauti and Kyuki were running parallelly.
00:25:24 Then I did Kehna Hai Kuch Mujhko, Kasam Se, Kayamat, Bandili and may be two, three other shows which I don't remember.
00:25:34 But every year she would give me another show. And I salute Ekta that I got into that zone saying,
00:25:44 "Do or die." And she would not even give me, forget about one day to sit at home, she would not give me four hours to go home.
00:25:54 And I am very happy for that. You know, that just snaps you out and says, and then, of course, I used to be the guard, the gatekeeper,
00:26:04 who would be sent everywhere, "Look at that actor, he is fussing, go explain to him." -Okay. -So, I would do all the rounds of Sankram
00:26:11 and talking to all the troublesome actors who would, who were in the situation where I was. -Where you were. -Where jaan terna.
00:26:17 Hai, hai, hai, hai. -Achha. -So, yeah, samjhana padta hai ki bhai, yeh toh, it's a fleeting thing. -Right.
00:26:25 -And you can, you are here today but tomorrow you will have to find yourself all over again. So, don't do that yaar. Shanti rakho hai, karke jao.
00:26:32 -Achha, so, you, who had been in that phase for nine years, you now became the advisor who could tell others. -Aha, aha.
00:26:41 So, Jeetu ji was there, Jeetu ji would call me and say, "Jada baat karna usse, pooch kya problem hai?"
00:26:47 Ki find out what it is and let's solve it. And then most of it would get solved. -Okay. -There were one or two instances, of course, where they were like,
00:26:56 nahi. And all those actors are, I don't know where they are today. We don't see them anymore.
00:27:02 So, just that respect. -So, when once a Balaji happened to you, whether it was the Zee show or K and K,
00:27:09 did you completely change who you were as an actor? -Absolutely. -Your discipline, your sense of discipline, your drinking, your… -Absolutely.
00:27:18 -Except your punctuality which is always there. But everything. -So, I will tell you a story. -Yes.
00:27:24 -We were talking about meeting Ekta. -Yes. -So, in 2002 Diwali, we were invited to Ekta's party. Like, yes!
00:27:36 We have got an invite to go to Ektaji's party. So, and I had met Neelam by that time. -Okay. Oh, you had.
00:27:45 -I met Neelam in 2000. So, that's, see, again, life, I said, life happens to you. So, Neelam coming into my life,
00:27:52 Ekta coming into my life, Balaji telefilms, that discipline, that thing ke boss… -Samay. -Haan, samay.
00:28:00 It all coincided. And of course, even then, even in 2002, Bajaj had gone through the roof already. -Yes.
00:28:10 -I was Mihir. Even then, our access to Ekta was very limited. -Limited. -So, we couldn't like go and walk into her room or anything.
00:28:20 But when I went to her house, I was asking Neelam, I said, Neelam said, you know, Neelam is a very simple lady. -I know.
00:28:28 -She was like, I know, you know. She is like, should we give her a cologne? You can't give Ekta Kapoor a cologne.
00:28:34 You should be giving her Ganeshji. I said, you haven't seen a picture of her Ganeshji in her house.
00:28:40 I said, you can't give her a bigger Ganeshji. So, I met Ekta for 20 seconds on her Diwali party.
00:28:48 And I told her, I don't know whether she will remember or not, but I remember these words. I told her, I said,
00:28:56 ma'am, the only gift that I can give you this Diwali is my dedication as an actor.
00:29:04 I never ever said I want to go home. Guru has been telling me. I said, you guys manage. You guys tell me where to go.
00:29:15 I have, like other actors, not just me, I have fainted on set. Doctor has, I have fainted three times.
00:29:23 In a span of one hour. Doctor has been called. Neelam has come and raved there. All has happened.
00:29:31 But, so, not so much Kyuki, but Kasauti was being directed by a guy called Kaid. And he got it. He understood.
00:29:41 So, it used to be 12 hours, right? So, 7 to 7 I would go for Kyuki. And 7 to 7 I would go for Kasauti.
00:29:52 So, this is technically no time to go home. At that point, you know, you are, A, you have a job.
00:30:00 B, you have suddenly become Bajaj. In one shot. -Mr. Bajaj. -You have become Mr. Bajaj.
00:30:10 You have been, you are suddenly bigger than you have ever been. -Correct. -Star TV is telling Balaji that
00:30:18 sorry, you have to renegotiate this man's contract. Because you can't let him go now. This story has to go on.
00:30:24 So, Balaji is calling you and say, achha abhi do teen mere ka nahi, ek saal ka karna padhega. So, all that positivity is coming to you.
00:30:31 And I was just happy the fact that, arre, I am needed. You know, that they need me yaar to be here.
00:30:42 Such a high na? -It's a high. It's an amazing feeling. -And Mihir Vidani also happens. -To be needed is a… -Absolutely.
00:30:49 Yeah. And Mihir, I am like… -By the channel, by the producer, by everybody. -Damn, nobody is working as Mihir.
00:30:54 I am going to flop. People are going to, one Bajaj hit and one Mihir, nothing, people are not going to accept me.
00:31:00 Because Mihir was already such a big thing. -Yeah. And suddenly Mihir also went through the roof that, you know, the chemistry with Smriti.
00:31:08 That worked, my chemistry with Shweta worked. So, yeah, just two words, grateful and thankful. -Your chemistry with women works anyway, Raman.
00:31:17 Okay, if you say so. -How is your equation with Smriti now? -Fantastic, fantastic. -Do you meet? Are you in touch?
00:31:27 Yeah, yeah, of course, I am in touch. I meet not very often. Bumping into each other happens.
00:31:34 But we do text each other. And I am just amazed, actually I am not amazed. Wrong choice of words.
00:31:44 One knew that she would be, one didn't know that she would become a politician but one knew that whatever she would do, she would like hit it really big.
00:31:54 Because she always had that, you know, she has had it always. -And she would never be just an actor. She would go beyond that.
00:32:02 Correct, correct, correct. So, she decided to go into politics but, you know, at that time when you would look at her,
00:32:08 you would feel like she would probably do other businesses and, you know, kind of… -She will grow. -Grow, yeah, exponentially.
00:32:15 So, and, you know, with her, it's just the day one, the way she spoke to me on day one, when I met her.
00:32:28 By which time she was already known. -Yeah, yeah, she was Tulsi. -She was Tulsi, yeah. -Yeah, nobody called me Mir, they would call me,
00:32:34 "Arey, Tulsi cha navra". -Achha, Tulsi cha navra. -Tulsi cha navra. -Okay. -So, yeah, I mean, and her affection, her tone of voice towards me,
00:32:45 the way she talks to me is still the same. There is no difference in that. -Oh, that's fantastic. -That's amazing.
00:32:53 And how is your equation with Ikta? -Ikta is my boss, yeah. Yeah, Ikta is my boss. It's not just me, Neelam also knows that it is something that,
00:33:07 you know, she calls me right now and says, "Ki paanch din ka kaam kar kar." I have done it before. In Ram Sakshi's serial.
00:33:16 And then, you know, of course, the staff, they are like, "Sir, the check." I said, "What check? No check."
00:33:23 She has given enough checks. No checks for this. Even if today she tells me that, you know, "Come, I want you to do this three-day, four-day job for me."
00:33:32 And I will proudly, happily go, yeah. -So, that equation also doesn't change. -Yeah. See, so, Jeetu ji and me, we go back to 92.
00:33:44 You know, we did a film in the south where he was there and, you know, lot of other, Danny sir was there. We did that film.
00:33:52 So, I know him since then. The way he behaves with me, you know, it's very apparent that he loves me.
00:34:01 The way Shobhama behaves with me. So, you know, largely, okay, now films and all that is fine. It's a journey.
00:34:10 But the people to bring me out of the gutter, so to say, is Balaji Deverakonda. So, that can never go away.
00:34:22 Do you remember when you made the transition from living in the car to a house again?
00:34:27 -So, yeah, so, in 97, 97 towards the end of 97, then of course, I, again, I found a house, I started living in it.
00:34:44 I would lock myself inside because I didn't have rent. So, kya karenge? Luckily it was the first floor.
00:34:52 So, I used to climb out of the window and climb back in from the window because I knew those guys would come to us rent and I genuinely didn't have money to pay rent.
00:35:01 I had a car but I had no money for fuel. So, life was very bad. So, 97, then, when my first house, there was this,
00:35:12 I don't know why, but the government came up with some scheme, ki if you give this much money, we will give you the house and then you can pay over so many years.
00:35:25 -That was at Mada Street? -Yeah. So, my first house was in Mada. I still have it. -Okay. -Yeah.
00:35:32 So, yeah, so, then I did something, I said, gadi beshto, camera beshto, sabko beshto, beshto, beshto.
00:35:42 And then I have this friend called Kuldeep Bhalwasia. He helped me with a little bit of money, which I have never repaid.
00:35:53 Because it's a debt I cannot, you know. -You can't repay it with money. -Yeah. It's a very small amount. It's not about the amount.
00:36:03 It's not about the amount. I cannot return that gesture ever. So, never, never gave him that money back.
00:36:13 Because I wanted to stay with me. So, yeah, so, then finally, of course, then we had a house.
00:36:23 No furniture. -Then you had a house and no furniture. -Yeah, no furniture and then I said, arey, now to thoda baad work is happening, let's break down the walls.
00:36:31 So, I broke down the walls and all the rubble. So, I told him, I said, yaar, yeh so, kachra toh hatao.
00:36:37 Bola, sir yeh kachra hataane ka 2000 rupee laga. I was like, what? Nobody told me that.
00:36:43 So, the first time Neelam came to my house, she was like, you live like this? So, I think she then decided ke isko dhar hoon main teekh kartu.
00:36:54 So, the rest of Neelam's life went in teekh karwa hi. -It is still going. -It's still going. -Still going.
00:37:05 See, there is an amazing love between Neelam and me. But we are not cut from the same cloth.
00:37:17 Yeah, we are two completely different people. And I seriously believe that every husband and wife fight, they have the disagreements.
00:37:27 If you are not having disagreements and not fighting, that means something is wrong with your relationship.
00:37:32 So, yeah, we have our fights. And she is, you know, she gets upset very quickly. So, but there is a lot of merit in what she says.
00:37:46 And sometimes, chahakar bhi, I can't kind of maintain that. There is a being in me
00:37:58 who is a different kind of being. So, especially now, my, you know, when I focus on something, then it's like undeterrable.
00:38:11 You can't… -Tunnel vision. -And when somebody tries, yeah, yeah, yeah. And when somebody, yeah, with a positive kind of tunnel vision.
00:38:18 And when somebody tries to deter me, then I get irritated. It's like, that's why I am not going out only. You know.
00:38:26 You want your routine, you want your regimented. -Yeah, regimented life. Because, you know, I mean, I am an actor, fine.
00:38:35 I have friends who I should meet. I tell all my friends, ki tumh log Sunday ko brunch kyu nahi karte?
00:38:41 I don't drink. I don't eat meat. -So, when did you give up drinking? -So, I never say that I have given up.
00:38:50 Because that creates a pressure on you, na? Ki main nahi peeta. There is that, you know, those few times where,
00:38:59 you know, I will sit with Neelam and have a glass of wine, we chat, whether at home or when we are travelling abroad,
00:39:09 you know, just, padhi jaldi karo. You know, I ask her at 5.30 pm if we are in Amsterdam.
00:39:17 I tell her, I said, chalo, let's go down to… it's still bright outside, so, I don't understand the connection.
00:39:25 It's like, you know, it's a glass of wine. You are not drinking to get drunk. Have a glass of wine, eat your food and bro, by 9.30, let's go to bed, na?
00:39:34 So, that you are up at 5.30, the next day is 6. You know, you are up and about, there is a purpose to that day.
00:39:42 As opposed to drinking till 2 o'clock in the night and you waking up at 12.30, half your day is gone.
00:39:48 So, when did you start going easy with liquor? Let me put it that way. Not that you gave it up, but…
00:39:54 It's been a long time.
00:39:58 Did it happen because of that extreme work ethic? No, no, it just happened.
00:40:03 Yeah, yeah, yeah. That work and then the… because of that work, those few days in between, that, you know,
00:40:13 those two, three days of Christmas holidays that we used to get near K time pe, jab koi nahi aata tha kaam pe.
00:40:21 So, that's why Ekta chose my marriage day at that time. You get married now, because nobody will come to work anyway.
00:40:27 So, in these three days, you get married, take your honeymoon and come back on the second to shoot. I was like, okay, boss, done.
00:40:34 So, yeah, so, that period would then, you know, you suddenly felt like you have been released from prison.
00:40:41 And then you would go and hit the bottle and then you come back to work saying, shit, what happened?
00:40:47 So, then I said, best to… -Tone it down. -No, let it go only. Let it go.
00:40:54 Also, very thankfully, alcohol, I got on to another high, which is called clarity.
00:41:06 Energy. So, I like, I like to wake up like that. You know, I like to wake up like that every morning.
00:41:17 Nobody wakes up in my house. Nobody wakes up that early. So, I go, I make my own coffee, I sit with my coffee,
00:41:23 I see my messages, I see my emails, I do my thinking. And, but alcohol makes you wake up like this.
00:41:32 I don't like it anymore. I like to be up and about. And then another thing is that you have kids at home,
00:41:44 you have wife at home. And I have this phobia inside me. My daughter is studying in LA.
00:41:50 You know, I have this phobia that what if something happens in the night to anybody, to either in my family
00:42:00 or my friends who are like my family and I get a call and I am not able to react because I am under the influence of alcohol.
00:42:09 I don't want that to happen. -Oh my God! Okay. -So, I have one… -Itna thinking. -Haan ki Bhagwan kare kuch na hoon.
00:42:17 But what if somebody reaches out to me for help and I am like… -And you are not in a condition. -And I am not in a state to help that person.
00:42:26 That would be a, I will not be able to unleash that. -Face yourself. -Yeah. So, that I will not be able to handle.
00:42:34 -So, actually a lot of things just happened at the right time for you to come back on track. -Haan. -The work, Neelam coming into your life.
00:42:42 -Like I said, life happened. -Everything, my life just happened. -Life taught me. -But that's fantastic. -Abhi tu flop ho gaya hai kyunki teri buri yaadat hai.
00:42:50 -Okay. -Kuch chod do. -But like you said, you learnt from it. So, that was, you know, the best thing was that you learnt from it. -Correct.
00:42:58 -That was the best part. -If you don't learn… -Yeah, then you are lost. -Then you are lost. -Yeah. -Then you are done.
00:43:06 -Yes. True, true. And there are so many. -There are so many. I have videos of people who… -That's right. -It's scary. It is scary to see them.
00:43:16 I know them when they came into the industry which with so much promise. So much promise. Some of them have been called the next Amitabh Bachchan.
00:43:28 That kind of promise. And for them to be in the state they are in currently and nowadays, it's not just about the alcohol.
00:43:39 There are so many other substances. You know, it's like, what are you doing? You are going to kill yourself, yaar.
00:43:46 And then what about your old age? I don't want to grow old. I mean, I want to age programmatically. -Heavy old.
00:43:55 -But look at you, you are 70. -Yes. -No, I want to, I want to, I like to run. Half the countries abroad, I have seen running.
00:44:06 And Neelam would be very surprised. Neelam would say, is there a bakery here? I want to buy some clothes. I would say, oh, yeah,
00:44:12 I have a left from here. And then just as you take a right is the second store.
00:44:16 And she would like, have you been here before? -Okay. -And she never figured it out that I would go for a run in the morning.
00:44:22 So, I know all the cafes that open early. I know all the, when I need my coffee at 5 am. And everybody is sleeping in the room, so, I can't do khattar-bhattar.
00:44:31 So, in every city in Europe, I know all the cafes that open at 5 am. -Okay, alright. Tell me, what did
00:44:42 Vikram Aditya see in you to make you that horrible father that you were in Udaan? Because that was again a life changing, career changing.
00:44:54 -Yeah, so, I don't think he saw anything in me. -But you? -Because I was not casted in that role. -But you look like this.
00:44:59 -No, I was not casted in that role. -Oh! -Yeah, yeah, yeah. There is a story behind it. So, I was casted in Ram Kapoor's role.
00:45:06 -Ah! -Okay, now you don't have to ask me the name of the actors because, yeah, it's, they were my friends.
00:45:14 So, and I really, I really respect them as actors. So, hence, without taking names. -Okay. -So, the actor who played Bhairav Singh
00:45:23 was in my mould. The actor who was supposed to play Ram Kapoor's role was in Ram Kapoor's mould. -Okay. -Okay?
00:45:31 -Okay. -Now, the actor who was supposed to play Ram Kapoor's role backed out. -Okay. -Okay, so, they called me.
00:45:40 They said, please come. It's a four, five day job. We know you are very busy on television. But Kashyap. -Haan.
00:45:48 He said, Vikram, I have been making it. Will you do it? I said, I will do it. It's a matter of four, five days.
00:45:55 So, I said, yes. And then the actor who was playing Bhairav Singh, he backed out. -Oh! Okay. -So, then I don't know what conversation
00:46:09 Kashyap and Muthwane might have had. -We talked about Anurag Kashyap. -Yeah. -Yes. -So, Anurag and Vikram might have spoken about something.
00:46:17 I just had, I had just come home from a shoot at 4 am and at around 7, 7.30 am, Neelam is waking me up.
00:46:25 Wake up, wake up, wake up. Anurag is sitting outside. I was like, what did he, why is he sitting outside? Is everything okay?
00:46:33 I went and I said, kya, kya hua? Chai bhai pehega? He said, chai bhai nahi pehena. Abhi aap Bhairav Singh kar rahe ho.
00:46:40 Main jana ho abhi, meri meeting hai UDV saath. But nahi, but you are doing Bhairav Singh. You are okay na?
00:46:46 No, no, you are doing Bhairav Singh. And he left. So, I don't know. -Okay. -I never asked. I never was told what transpired, why they…
00:46:57 But then they moved me to Bhairav Singh. -Okay. -And they brought Ram to play. So, it actually came back to how he must have envisioned it.
00:47:08 When he casted those two very fine actors. -Okay. So, then Ram played Ram and you played… -I played Bhairav Singh.
00:47:15 So, you know, when I tell you now that life has just happened to me. -Absolutely. Absolutely.
00:47:20 Yeah. But was, did you identify in any way at all with that father? -No, no, no. -With Bhairav Singh?
00:47:28 I have never, I have never raised my voice at my children. I told you my daughter is 18, son is 16. I have never raised my voice at them.
00:47:37 Your father never raised his voice with you like that? -No, no, my father did. -Achha. -My father was a khak. -Achha.
00:47:44 But not like this, right? -No, no. I used to be a very wild kid, yaar. So, all the measures, disciplinary tactics have been used on me.
00:47:54 And still phir bhi kuch nahi hua. So, anyway. -Achha. So, you are a very different father from what you played in Udaan.
00:48:01 I am the exact opposite. -Achha. -I am the exact opposite. -Okay. -I mean, I care what they become.
00:48:10 But they have to become what they want to become. I, last night I texted my son.
00:48:20 I forget what I texted him. Something like, a father must let go of his dreams for his baby to allow the baby to attain his own dreams.
00:48:30 We all want for our children. -Yeah, absolutely. -But we can't, we shouldn't force them. We should allow them to blossom. -Have their own dreams. -Yeah.
00:48:38 I fell into the gutter and learnt. I don't want my son to fall in the gutter. If he can learn without falling in the gutter,
00:48:45 some people learn, some people look at the gutter and say, oops, let's not fall into it. -Yeah. -So, he is one of that.
00:48:51 Once or twice, you know, if he makes a mistake and learns from it, at least it's his reclaiming of his life. -He is very tall, isn't he?
00:49:01 He is 6'6". -Yeah, because we have seen… -And no, he doesn't play basketball. He doesn't like it. -Because I have seen photographs of you and him. -Yeah, yeah.
00:49:08 And his name is Agastya. -Agastya. -And he, does he also want to become an actor? -Yeah, he wants to become an actor.
00:49:17 He writes very well. I am very surprised that he comes up with these ideas. And it just happens with him.
00:49:25 He comes up and I am like, wow! That's an amazing concept. In fact, there is one idea which he has given me which I really, really like.
00:49:36 I am trying to build it with him. -Okay. -So, yeah, full filmigra. No. He will be 16, na? -Yeah. -So, now he will do all that.
00:49:44 -Okay. -All that. -And you are okay with it if he wants to be an actor? -Yeah, if he can be an actor, why not? -And your daughter?
00:49:51 My daughter is studying cinema. -Okay. So, she also wants to come in here in one way or the other. -In one way or the other.
00:49:57 But she is a little more, you know, she got into USC, one of the most difficult universities to get into.
00:50:07 She got in there by herself and, you know, she is there and she is very, you know, focused. And my son is a mastikhor.
00:50:17 But… -Bap pe gaya hai? -Bap pe gaya. Toh jaisa baap ka hoon na, life happened for me. I think it will happen for me. -It will happen for you also.
00:50:26 -Yeah, yeah. -So, you realize that you and Amitabh Bachchan have the same birthday? -Of course, I do. -October 11th. -Of course, I do.
00:50:32 -Yeah. And you have a son called Agastya, he has a grandson called Agastya. -Haan. I don't know how that happened.
00:50:38 I don't know how that happened but I think his grandson is younger than my son. If I am not mistaken. -No, oolta.
00:50:46 -Oolta hai, gaya? -I think Agastya is older because now he is ready to debut. -Haan. -He is already ready to debut.
00:50:52 -Haan, well, I am just happy. -With the coincidence? -With the coincidence. -But are you, do you find any similarities between you and Amitabh Bachchan?
00:51:01 Given that you have the same birthday. Different years. -No, ma'am. I know him very closely. I wish there were similarities.
00:51:13 I mean, he is Mr. Bachchan, no? And, you know, he is just, I hold him in reverence.
00:51:22 And I don't know whether, I mean, at one point of time in my career people start calling me TV's Amitabh Bachchan.
00:51:33 So, that also happened. Maybe the media saw some similarities or maybe they just kind of that level where I was
00:51:46 bad on TV. So, they kind of, maybe the roles that I was doing with my streaked white hair, grey hair.
00:51:53 I don't know what it was. But yeah, there is a lot of, you know, same birthday and but otherwise… -You don't see any similarity.
00:52:02 -No, I aspire to become like him. -Be like him. -But I mean, what he is, is a, you know… -Rare. -Is very rare.
00:52:12 -Yes, yes. Absolutely, absolutely. -How have you got this image of a caduck, stern, unrelenting person?
00:52:22 Because that's what you were in Udaan. And then Kabil mein toh aap toh villain hi ban gaye, along with your brother.
00:52:29 I mean, you know, almost film after film. And then Anurag Kashyap puts you in all those dark films.
00:52:34 You played Tejaswi. Tejaswi, his husband was terrible. -Ugly. -Yeah, horrible man. I mean, whether you are in uniform or out of it, you are a horrible man.
00:52:43 So, I think that's what they mean, no, when they say typecasting. -Okay. -That you become what you play on screen.
00:52:55 -Acceptable in that kind of… -No, you don't become. Your image, you start carrying that image of a very serious, you know, stern…
00:53:05 -Caduck person. Unrelenting. -Unrelenting. But I have anything but that. -Acha? -Yeah.
00:53:12 -You know, I, Bruce Lee had said that be like water, my friend. You know, become the pot, become the tea cup.
00:53:24 So, I think actors also should be like water. I mean, you know, you are odourless, you can mix with any colour, you can take any shape.
00:53:33 So, that fixatedness of nahi, mujhe aisa lagta hai, toh aisa hi hona chahiye, that also stops your growth.
00:53:42 Because if I am not, let's say, listening to what you have to say, because I am already fixated. I have made my decision.
00:53:49 Now, I don't want to listen to you. I am just giving you that little attention without giving you any attention, without listening to you.
00:53:55 -Without being here actually. -Without being here. So, that I don't think is the mark of a, you know, human being who is going to grow.
00:54:03 -Right. So, as an actor, what is the growth you would like to see? -I want to win an Oscar. Yeah.
00:54:13 -But you missed it because you didn't do Catherine Wiglow's film. -Yeah, but anyway, I wouldn't have won an Oscar for that one.
00:54:20 -Yeah, of course. -I don't know whether I will win one or not. But, yeah, my goal is there. -Okay.
00:54:27 So, they say, aim for the moon, you will land up in the stars somewhere. So, yeah. So, there is…
00:54:33 Is there any other offer like Zero Dark Thirty which you missed out on because of your dates with? -Homeland.
00:54:39 -Oh, you missed out Homeland also? -Yeah. -Okay. -So, when Homeland was offered to me, I was shooting Adalat.
00:54:47 For Abhimanyu Singh and on Sony. It was a bi-weekly. -Right. -Saturday, Sunday. So, bi-weekly thriller.
00:54:55 And I mean, I understand Homeland and all that, but K.D. Pathak is one of the most popular characters that I have done. -Right.
00:55:04 -And people still love him. People still love that character. It was my show, yaar. -Yeah. -I would not give up my show and show
00:55:12 Thenga to Sony and to Contello Pictures and say, "Acha main jaa raho hoon." -Kyu? -If I was free,
00:55:19 I would have gladly gone. And they wanted me for five months. Five months means your show shuts down, no? -Absolutely.
00:55:25 -And one show that is rolling, it's 150 people living on it. So, you are shutting down 150 families. -Yeah. Yeah.
00:55:32 -You can't do that. -To do a Homeland. -To do a Homeland. -Yeah. Correct. -Woh usme apne ko aise
00:55:37 Arbi-warbi manana hai. -Ya. -So, no, no, no. -But that means that door is open. -Of course.
00:55:46 -Like Bigloo's film and like… -Ya, ya, ya. 100% I am confident of the fact that sooner or later it will happen.
00:55:53 -You will get a Hollywood break. -100%. -And you will be at the Oscars. -I don't know. I hope I am.
00:56:01 But yeah, that's where I am heading. -Okay. That's interesting. -Now, how soon, where that happens, I am not very sure.
00:56:12 Life is very unpredictable. -Abhi kuch hai? Something brewing? -Abhi main apne desh mein toh kaam kar doon pehle.
00:56:18 -Nee, woh toh kar hi rahe ho. Lekin kuch brew aur… -Ek hi filmfare jeeta hai yaar. 30 saal ke career mein.
00:56:23 -Anything brewing from the West? -Ya, so, last year also there were couple of things brewing.
00:56:31 But then again, it's, you know, that thing ki they still look at Indian actors even after Priyanka and Deepika,
00:56:42 they still look like, at Indian actors like, yeh, yeh, yeh, yeh, yeh. -Haan. Asian. -Haan. Toh aisa nahi.
00:56:50 Aur main wahan jaunga nahi. Wahan nahi jaunga. -Correct. -Tum aao mujhe yahan se leke jaao.
00:56:58 -Leke jaao. -Toda, aa, toda main. -Akkad hai. -I am an Indian yaar. Akkad nahi, but this is my pride for my country yaar.
00:57:04 I will not come and, you know, bheeg maango. So, how, how Deepa Mitha, she called me.
00:57:15 I knew how the West works, no? So, when I did a film with her, it was a Canadian film.
00:57:22 And she called me and I said, ya ma'am, she said, somebody will call you and will you take it forward.
00:57:30 I said, ya ma'am, whatever they, you know, whenever they call me, I will figure out and I will go and audition for the part.
00:57:38 So, she said, what audition? I said, I am sure you need me to audition. She said, no, no, no, no, no.
00:57:45 It's done. If you say, good to go, we are good to go with you. We don't want an audition. We have seen your work. -Okay.
00:57:53 So, aisa hona chahiye na, tab toh maza hai. -Bilkul, bilkul. -Wahan jaake phir… -Talking of being a proud Indian,
00:58:02 you actually stand as a very, very correct symbol of an Indian because you are an ethnic Bengali. -Ya, ya.
00:58:12 And you were born in Maharashtra. -I was born in Maharashtra. -But you grew up in Gujarat. -I grew up in Gujarat. -And you do Hindi films.
00:58:19 And I do Hindi films. That's amazing. -So, doesn't that make you… -I never thought about it that way. -Ya, ya. But that makes you complete Indian, isn't it?
00:58:25 I love my country. -You were born actually in the RSS ka hub. -I was born in Nagpur, yes.
00:58:33 So, more than my country, I love my countrymen. -Okay. -Because, and this, you know, I have seen even the foreigners.
00:58:45 Foreigners across all caste and creed. I know of foreigners being married to some of my Indian friends.
00:58:57 And they are so different. You know, they, there is an initial thing ki,
00:59:04 arre yeh Indian ke pata nahi. They fall in love. And they become like us, yaar. -Right. -They become like us.
00:59:12 So, there is a stark contrast between a normal foreigner and a foreigner who is married to an Indian. -Ya.
00:59:21 You know, the emotions come into play. Toh hona chahiye na aisa. Otherwise, aap wohi cut to cut, oh, you are 16, go away.
00:59:29 Find your own life. Hum log karte hai na. Hum log toh, hamara toh beta kabhi bada hi nahi hota na.
00:59:36 Beta kabhi bada hi nahi hoti. -That's true. -Hum log toh, we are forever fathers. -Forever, ya. -So, even our relationships.
00:59:43 You know, meet an Indian, Indian, two Indian friends, six, seven years, they have not seen anywhere and at whatever Liverpool station they meet each other,
00:59:52 they start off. -Well, you and I, I haven't met you for years. -Ya. -But that bond is always there. -Correct. Correct.
00:59:59 -Which is a bond you pursue along. Isn't it? -Our hospitality, our warmth. -Absolutely. -We are a breed of over emotional people, yes.
01:00:06 And we love it. -And we love it. -Ya. We love who we are. -Hona chahiye. We are humans, ya. Humans are supposed to be emotional.
01:00:12 -Absolutely. -We are not supposed to be cut and dried. -Coming to some of your co-stars, what was it like working with Rishi Kapoor in Student of the Year when he is hitting on you?
01:00:22 -Arey, Chintu ji, you know, I, he is one of the few people, Chintu ji, that's Guddu ji, Rakesh Vashan.
01:00:34 You know, it has never happened that I have called Chintu ji and late in the night also.
01:00:42 That what's up, called him, I have realized, ki, arey, kitne baje main unko phone ke liye, he has already picked up. -Okay. -Shooting in Chandigarh.
01:00:51 So, he will pick up the phone and say, main aadha gandhe baat karta hu. -Okay. -Or he will pick up the phone, shot bhe hoon, baap mein karta hu.
01:00:59 And he will call back. -But he will call back. -And that love that I received from him, from Guddu ji, from Jeetu ji,
01:01:08 from Mr. Bachchan, it's just, and Chintu ji… -You have any incidents? -Yeah, yeah, yeah, so many, so many incidents with him.
01:01:19 So… -Especially where he was hitting on you. -No, no, no. That is of course filming. -For the film. -But, okay, I will tell you an incident from the same film.
01:01:30 So, he said, kya kar raha hai raat ko? He was a big bully, no? He liked to bully everybody. -Yeah, of course. -So, Mickey was with us,
01:01:39 Mickey contractor. And Mickey and Chintu ji were very, very close to each other.
01:01:44 Malna, kuch nahi sir, main hum log, amar paas hai hi kya karne ko. Achha? Mickey ko leke adde pe aajaana shaam ko.
01:01:54 Because he packed up at 4 o'clock. -Achha. -So, he had already packed up. He came all the way, he told us, tu kya kar raha hai raat ko?
01:02:01 He said, Mickey ko leke adde pe aajaana, tie gum ke baad. I said, okay. Adda means our lounge at the JW Marriott. -Okay.
01:02:10 So, we go, shower, change and I get hold of Mickey. Mickey is fussing, I told him, Chintu ji has called, we have to go.
01:02:18 Aaye kya aap uske abhi pakha hai. He is right, his own little dosto mein jagda is happening.
01:02:24 We said, Chintu ji is already sitting there. In his pink shirt, glowing. -Oh yeah, he is always sitting there.
01:02:30 -He is already, haan, he is always sitting there. And then he is reprimanding us for coming late.
01:02:35 They said, kya kar raha hai? Maine waha table book ki aaya hai. He was very fond of feeding people. -Very fond, yeah.
01:02:41 Maine waha table book ki aaya hai. I said, chalo Chintu ji, let's go. Pehle baje khatam kar rahe de. I said, okay, done.
01:02:48 So, that restaurant was where you, it started with a wine shop and then you had counters of sea food, vegetables, sauces, rice, noodles.
01:03:00 And there is this girl in a small skirt following you with a trolley. You take whatever you eat.
01:03:09 And then there is a live chef and you give him the cart, you buy your own booze. You give him the cart and he makes it for you.
01:03:16 I am following Chintu ji and I can't figure out what he is doing. And then we go and sit on the table
01:03:26 and in over 15 minutes the food comes. And it's in bulk. -Okay. -The food. Chintu ji, how much you ordered?
01:03:40 Who is going to eat so much? He said, koi baat nahi. Jitna kha sakta hai, kha. Khana kabhi kam nahi padna chahiye.
01:03:47 So, he was so fond of, you know, taking care of people, feeding people. And then of course, if he lost it on somebody,
01:03:59 Oh! -My God! I have been privy to a fight between him and another very fine actor. My God!
01:04:10 Unstoppable that man. True patha. -Yeah, that's true. That's true. You know, Hrithik Roshan during Kabul,
01:04:19 he said that when his sons grew up, he would like them to have the kind of bond that you and Rohit have. -Yes, yes, he said that.
01:04:27 So, do you and Rohit really have such a great bond? -Rohit is like Chintu ji. He is a big bully. -Oh! -Yeah.
01:04:36 Aapse chota hai na? -Chota hai na. Toh ulta hona chahiye na. I am the elder one, I should be bullying him. -Exactly.
01:04:43 But it's not like that. He is just a big bully. He likes getting his own way. But after our baba went, he has been like a son to me.
01:04:52 So, it's, you know, also, then you know that he is just like that. His intentions are not bad. He is one gussel, one person like that.
01:05:05 So, yeah, but I mean, I know for a fact, which I think he also knows that if push comes to shove,
01:05:15 whether the world stands by me or not, Rohit Roy will definitely be standing next to me. -Okay. -No matter what the circumstances.
01:05:25 -Okay. -No matter what. -So, you do kind of have that bond. -So, that's the bond. -That's the bond. -Yeah. -Okay. -It's an, yeah.
01:05:32 And you know, it wasn't easy for him either after he did that big television debut. -Swabhiman. -Swabhiman. -Yeah.
01:05:41 So, it wasn't very easy for him either to survive. Because he has been getting work off and on, getting work off and on, etc.
01:05:49 So, do you kind of help each other? -He will never ask me for help. -He will never ask you for help. -Never ask me for help. -Okay. -Nor will I.
01:05:57 Yeah, we are men, yeah. We will figure it out. Yeah, yeah, yeah. We will figure it out. His daughter is going to Brown.
01:06:04 He will figure it out. -Acha. -For us, it's about our children now. -Yeah, that's right. -Ain na? -Yeah.
01:06:11 Toh aisa kuch hai nahi ke we don't ask each other. But whatever is ours is ours only, no? -Yeah.
01:06:21 There is no third party. -Yeah. -And since the beginning it's been like that with whatever was there.
01:06:26 There was no question ki main yeh le jaaun. Nahin le jaa. There is not even a second thought. -Yeah.
01:06:37 It's ours. -Yeah, yeah. Done. -That's right. So, do you speak those five languages which I mentioned? All these languages?
01:06:45 Do you speak Bengali, Marathi? -I speak Bengali, Marathi. Marathi I speak little, little bit. -Acha. -That is very weird because I have lived most of my life in Maharashtra.
01:06:55 I was born in Maharashtra. -That's right. -But I think it's got to do with the schooling. If you are not schooled here and if you don't have local friends
01:07:03 who speak to you in Marathi. Now, over the years I have learnt Marathi because my make-up man is a Maharashtrian. -Okay.
01:07:10 So, I understand Marathi completely and I can speak a little bit. -You have never done a Marathi film? -I have never done a Marathi film.
01:07:18 Gujarati I speak fluently. Hindi of course. -Fluent Gujarati? -Yeah, yeah. Fluent Gujarati, fluent Gujarati, fluent Bengali.
01:07:27 So, Smriti and you could speak in fluent… -Smriti and me speak in Bengali. -Acha, oh! -Actually. -Really? Yeah, she is the multilingual in English.
01:07:36 Yeah. -She speaks to me in Bengali. -Okay. -So… -Are you inclined towards politics at all like she is?
01:07:42 I don't know. I don't understand politics. -Okay. -I, so, I have been offered a ticket twice. -By?
01:08:01 -By, once by BJP and once by Congress. -Okay. -And one time it was opposite Smriti.
01:08:11 I was like, what are you doing? I was like, brother, please forgive me. So, yeah, I was like, you know, I can't do this.
01:08:20 How could you? -Yeah, all that I can't do. So, I have never thought about it but if I were to join politics, I would be a big misfit.
01:08:31 My last question is about your sociality agency. You are the only actor who really started a business of his own.
01:08:40 Even when he was doing well as an actor. -Oh, that's not true. I mean, I know a lot of other actors who have had businesses.
01:08:50 Maybe in the same… -No, security. -Yeah, security, yes. I am the first actor to do that. And, but the only thing is that I was not doing well at that time.
01:09:01 So, the business actually came because of poverty, because of hunger and because of having no capital at all to do anything else.
01:09:14 Even start a vada pav stall because for vada pav stall also you need maida and aloo and tel and kadhai and all that.
01:09:23 So, and again, we are coming back to life happens. That time I have a friend called Vikas Varma.
01:09:34 He put me on to this. And so, I said, okay. So, he was the person who made me, first person to make me aware of my brand equity.
01:09:47 That even if you are down, you still carry a certain brand equity. And you must never let go of that. So, thank you Vikas.
01:09:55 Then it's just coincided with this Israeli team that was here in Mumbai. And I don't even know how I met them.
01:10:07 But I happened to meet them and you know, we met at my club and I bought them everybody coffee and nachta and all that.
01:10:17 And they, God knows what they wanted to discuss. But we ended up discussing ki, arey, you, why don't you come and train with us?
01:10:27 And mere pat so time hi time tha. I was not doing anything in that time. I said that would be very lovely.
01:10:35 And then they trained me and that's how I started. -You got into this business of also your own fitness regimen.
01:10:45 -Yes, yes, absolutely. Absolutely. -So, that's how your fitness regimen started. -No, I have always, I used to be an athlete,
01:10:53 you know, in school, I used to play football. I was kind of a champ, you know, athletic. Toh aisa nahi.
01:11:02 I have always been fit. -But this… -Ya, but with those periods of extreme unfitness. With like proper belly hanging and all that.
01:11:10 -Right, right. -Ya. -So, but this must have really regimented your life, isn't it? -Ya, ya. -Okay. -It does, it does. It does give you…
01:11:18 -And did, so, who were the clients you had? Because I remember two things very distinctly. I remember when Aamir Khan's father passed away.
01:11:27 I remember you were there. -I was there, yes. -And I remember you standing, you were by then very popular as an actor because bajaj,
01:11:33 sab ho gaya tha. And you were standing there yourself telling your people, ki yahan khade ho jao, you will stand here,
01:11:39 this will be the flow of people coming and going to stand here. -So, I told you, I told you somewhere in this interview that when I do something,
01:11:46 you know, then I am doing that thing. Then I am completely immersed and invested in it. Then it doesn't matter who,
01:11:52 then I am not carrying other ghosts with me. I am just doing it. And then of course,
01:11:57 you know, I used to be with Aamir and I was on Lagaan. -Yes. And there was a death threat or something at that time. -Huh? Sorry?
01:12:06 There was some death threat or something. He had, he was going through some threat at that time and you had provided the security for him during Lagaan. -Ya, ya.
01:12:14 And then, you know, and then we were friends also. And I know how fond that man is of me. So, you know, then it's everything together and you are there.
01:12:28 When Karan jo, his father passed also, again I saw you there. Again you were there personally directing your personnel to the security people.
01:12:36 So, Karan is very dear to me. But he will never be as dear to me as much as his father was. I mean, I remember, you know,
01:12:46 those days when his sets used to get constructed at, you know, at Film City. You know, he was just such a lovely man.
01:12:58 You know, in your initial days, there are few people who you, I received so much warmth from.
01:13:08 One was Chintuji, Randhir Kapoor sahab, Yas Ji. You know, these were the people who made you feel, who welcomed you. -Ya.
01:13:19 Into their fold. -Ya, into their fold. And they, those, you know, as a young actor, you know, when you don't know where you are going.
01:13:31 And these were the greats and, you know, they talk to you like this. Those words never leave you. -Ya, ya. That's true.
01:13:39 Again, that's why Karan is also special because he, you know. -So, at that time, you see, you started off with Aamir and all these people,
01:13:47 your security agency took off with… -With Aamir. Primarily with Aamir, yes. -Okay. -Yes.
01:13:53 And then it went on to include other celebrities as well? -Almost the entire industry. -Okay. Also, IPL time, isn't it?
01:14:01 You provided… -Yes. I did one season of IPL. -Okay. And during COVID, I believe, you have went through a down?
01:14:08 Ya, COVID, I went through a down obviously because all the businesses were shut down. -Everything got shut.
01:14:17 And Neelam and me decided that, of course, we didn't know what was going to happen.
01:14:26 The few months before that, I hadn't done much work. But I had done work earlier.
01:14:34 So, but then we decided that I had about 130 people on my roster. -Okay. -And we figured out that it was not their fault.
01:14:46 And they were all, they also had families, you know. Somebody's mother was sick and somebody's wife was pregnant.
01:14:53 That delivery was going to happen. And we don't know what was going to happen. So, we decided to pay everybody's salary.
01:15:04 And because, you know, there is only that much salary you can pay. -Yes. -So, then, you know, I mean, there were lot of,
01:15:14 there was lot of useless things lying around at home. There were cars which I was not using. And good luxury cars.
01:15:22 You know, like I had a Mini Cooper which I would never drive. Because Neelam would never like to sit in it. So, I would just stop driving that.
01:15:28 It was just lying. -Yeah. -So, we let that go. There were some other things, luxury items which I said, kya karna hai iska?
01:15:36 You know, might as well make, keep those families going till the last possible. So, yeah. I mean, it is something that
01:15:45 I have not done anybody a favor. It was my responsibility. That in times of crisis like that if your employer doesn't take care of you,
01:15:54 then who is going to take care of you? You are obviously going to fall back on your employer. So, it was my, you know, ethical and moral duty.
01:16:02 So, we did it. -And where does it stand now, your agency? -It's doing well. It's doing well. -Did you lose any clients at that time?
01:16:11 No, at that time, of course, business shut down. -One learnt, one heard that some of these people have dropped out.
01:16:20 Now, those few people, better not… -Let's not talk about them. Who are the people who stayed?
01:16:29 Everybody, everybody stayed. Everybody stayed. Special mentions to Akshay, to Karan, to Mr. Bachchan,
01:16:41 that they not only stayed, they without services they paid. -Oh! Wonderful. Okay. -Yeah. So, a lot of relief came from them.
01:16:53 To take care of your 130 people. -Yeah. I mean, let's just say out of 130 people, they took care of 30. -Right.
01:17:01 So, you know, or 25 or whatever. But they… -They did. -That time is a relief. It's a big relief. -Okay. So, the security agency continues.
01:17:10 It continues. Of course, the business is shit now. -Oh, it's not good. -Yeah, because now there is all in sundry.
01:17:17 People don't realise that, you know, they hire anybody. It's not that. When they run into a problem, those people are not even licensed.
01:17:28 You know, they can't be on ground. You need licensing, you need certain diligence, you know, to be done.
01:17:36 But, you know, acha yeh usko, usko usko jaanta hai, usko jaanta hai. Acha ke hi hai na, kar lo.
01:17:42 So, unfortunately, it's a sad situation that security people are treated worse, the least important. -Important, yeah.
01:17:52 But they are not. -When they are so important to your life. -Yeah, they are not. -To your safety. -Yeah. So, I have just stopped working with people like that.
01:17:59 -Okay. -Yeah. So, you know, it became, there was a time when at the advent of television, everybody is making a pilot.
01:18:08 Everybody has a… -Everybody has a security. -Everybody has a security. Because there used to be a lot of money in it. Not anymore.
01:18:16 But again, not 130, close to about 110 people. -Are still with you. -It's 110 families. -Who are still with you. -Yeah.
01:18:27 So, on my roster, of course, there are more people who work with me on and off. But these are on my roster. -Okay. Wonderful.
01:18:34 So, I am running 110 families. -Okay. -And I have no intention of shutting it down. -That's lovely. And how many films are we going to see you in
01:18:41 before you go to the west? -Before? No, no. I am not going to the west. The west is coming to me. -Coming to you. That's wonderful.
01:18:50 You know, I don't want to think of this because I don't want to worry about how many films and do the math.
01:19:00 I am not a math person. I am a heart person. I am a soul person. So, I just pray to God every morning I do this.
01:19:09 I thank him for first allowing me to open my eyes and still alive. So, thank you. Grateful for everything that I received yesterday
01:19:18 and the day before and the year before since my childhood. And then I surrender to him before I get out of bed.
01:19:26 I surrender to him and I say, okay, take me on your journey. So, that way, you know, that whole thing of,
01:19:33 arre, kya hoga, ho nahi raha hai. Mujhe Bansali sahab ke saath kaam karna hai but it's not happening.
01:19:39 I know for a fact that when Bansali sir, you know, has something like that, they are all intelligent people, no?
01:19:49 They will say, achha, cast this guy. Toh, it may happen, it may not happen, but why worry about it?
01:19:58 Lovely. So, on that note, thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you so much. Thank you for having me.
01:20:04 Pleasure. I am sorry for so much badbad. No, no, it was wonderful. Wasn't it wonderful?
01:20:08 Very wonderful. Yeah. Fabulous. So much to say, no? And we went down, covered so much ground together.
01:20:15 Yeah. They did that.
01:20:19 Yeah.
01:20:20 (upbeat music)
01:20:23 you