Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan may insist that his younger colleagues Dhanush and Akshara Hassan, who act alongside him in this weekend’s Hindi release, Shamitabh, were not intimidated by his dominant persona, but their body language seemed to tell a different story at a recent press junket in Dubai.
Promoting director R Balki’s drama, the soft-spoken Dhanush and Hassan seemed to be incapable of saying much beyond proclaiming how fortunate they are to work with this legendary actor.
But Bachchan, 72, perseveres.
“I don’t see why this question keeps coming up. We are all artists and we are paid to do our jobs. I don’t think there’s any space for intimidation or any kind of awe,” Bachchan said.
In Shamitabh, he reunites with director Balki, maker of their stupendously successful films Cheeni Kum and Paa.
“Balki has a unique brain and thinks of some unique ideas … And I can tell you that there’s never been a plot like this in the history of Indian cinema,” said Bachchan. It’s safe to say that Balki is one of the few directors who know how to utilise Bachchan effectively. In Cheeni Kum, Bachchan owned the role of an ageing, eccentric chef who courts a younger woman; in their next film, Paa, he moved us to tears with his inspiring role as a child afflicted by progeria (reverse ageing).
Meanwhile, their third outing, Shamitabh, is set against the Indian film industry and revolves around actors who come up with an unconventional plan to achieve success. Excerpts from our interview with Bachchan:
Q: What’s Shamitabh about?
A: The film we have made is about somebody’s voice. It’s about giving my voice to Dhanush, who plays an aspiring actor. Why we do it, how we do it and what happens next, you will have to watch Shamitabh when it releases here [on Thursday]. It’s a story of two individuals who are in possession of two different qualities and the idea that how wonderful it would be if both of them came together. Akshara, who plays a journalist, notices this and convinces both to come together and how this combination brings them success. And then, when they reach a certain point of success, their egos come in — where he [Dhanush’s character] thinks it is because of his talent and I think we are there because of my talent. If I say anything beyond that I would destroy the element of surprise.
Q: Dhanush is a man of few words. Does your voice match his personality?
A: Of course, otherwise we wouldn’t have made this film. Why should there be a disconnect between my voice and his persona? In the film, we have even explained that thought though.
Q: You were once rejected by All India Radio for the post of newsreader. Is this payback?
A: No, why would I mix personal incidents with my career? I never look back on anything. What do I gain from it? Do I go: ‘Tumne mujko let down kiya, main dikhatha hoon’ [You let me down, now let me show you what I can do]. It’s pointless to go down that ‘he did it to me, therefore I will show it to you’ route. You don’t get anything out of it, except for that small moment of self-praise. I don’t believe in self-praise. Yes, you get written up or get criticised. You may watch Shamitabh and lambast all three of us saying we were terrible. But, so what? But we would never go back and say: ‘you wrote those things about me’. Such anger would destroy my body. Revenge and payback is not going to help me at all.
Q: How do you ensure that Shamitabh, which the director proclaimed is an ode to your voice, doesn’t become a self-indulgent film?
A: If you talk of self-indulgence, every film should be that. In every film, we normal people start doing abnormal things and then ask intelligent people like you to assess what it is. There’s self indulgence in an actor when he’s acting, therefore I feel there’s self-indulgence in every film I do. What’s self-indulgence — either you are full of yourself or you are faking it. We are faking it in every film. For instance, in a film I suddenly become a gangster, police officer or a lover in a film but we are not like that in real life. So we are faking it and the best part is that we get paid for it. That in itself is a form of self-indulgence. We are all playing different characters in this film. And I don’t believe that this film is an ode to my voice. If that were the case, then it’s like making a documentary on someone’s life after he’s dead and gone. How can you do that?
Q: Director Balki has shaped two of your biggest recent blockbusters — Cheeni Kum and Paa. Do you say yes to him even before you hear the script?
A: There’s no rule that says that since two of our films did well, we have to work together. It’s more to do with what kind of stories we are going to work together in. There have been many instances where you work with people who haven’t had a successful background. I look at story and my character. They are the deciding factors. Maybe somewhere in the back of my mind, I realise he has made these successful films. But that thought is for people who are looking at improving upon their career. But my career is finished and over, so I don’t have to look at that.
Q: That’s a grim statement to make …
A: I am just talking about myself. These are the only kind of movies that will come to me — where I am playing an old, drunk, decrepit, wasted old man. At this age, these are the only kind of roles that come to me.
Q: Does that have to do with the way Bollywood functions?
A: It’s not the industry that decides. It’s the people who decide if they want somebody younger or more popular. This happens in every sphere of life. I can’t go around playing 20 year olds anymore. I have to accept anything that comes my way.
Q: What was the biggest challenge of Shamitabh?
A: The moment you accept such a role, you hope and pray that you can stop yourself from repeating yourself. There are many scenes where I play an alcoholic in this film. So the big question was how to model myself, how to behave and what kind of clothes should I wear. All these assist you in playing such a role. For Shamitabh, that modelling was done by Balki, the director and the writer — we just deliver. We are like the pizza delivery boy. The pizza is made by some expert at a restaurant. In this case, Balki was that expert. We were merely executing his ideas. There were many times when I was delivering my lines and he asked me to be a bit more flat in my delivery. I could never have thought of it and it was liberating.
Quote Unquote:
“It’s great to share screen space with Amitji. I couldn’t have asked for a better second Bollywood film. I couldn’t have asked for a better guide. I found this film refreshing and I found the characterisation different,” Dhanush said.
