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Still young at heart
Mohanlal has spent 30 years acting and shows no sign of slowing down. tabloid! interviewed him as he sped to a Dubai film shoot.
- By Manjusha Radhakrishnan, Staff Reporter
- Published: 22:56 June 23, 2009
- I have been in the industry for a long time, but I can still feel the same excitement, says Mohanlal.
- Image Credit: Supplied Picture
Mohanlal has spent 30 years acting and shows no sign of slowing down. tabloid! interviewed him as he sped to a Dubai film shoot.
The security guards manning the gates at Dubai Media City had an eventful working day on Thursday. They had the privilege of letting through a four-wheel drive - with their favourite actor Mohanlal in the passenger seat.
Watch video: Mollywood master Mohanlal
A fawning "Lalettan [Lal brother], thank you," and a handshake later, and the South Indian matinee idol was on his way to complete a film shoot at the Dubai International Airport.
"We have permission to shoot at the airport till 6pm and my entire crew is ready for me. I can't keep them waiting. It's just not right," says Mohanlal, craning his neck to face me in the back seat of the car.
The Shah Rukh Khan of the Malayalam (South Indian) film industry, he is one of the few actors who rates punctuality highly. Despite working in more than 300 films over 30 years and winning multiple awards, the veteran actor still approaches his shooting set with the same trepidation and awe as a beginner.
"I have been in the industry for a long time, but I can still feel the same excitement. Every day is like my first day in cinema. Even now, I am unsure about how my scene will go, there is that fire in me. I think that is the secret of my survival."
Though the self-effacing 49-year-old may define his long reign as survival, he has enjoyed a monopoly of sorts. It is believed that a mere cameo from the actor is a sure ticket to box office success.
"Yes, I have been in the industry for 30 years. But for me 30 is just a number. As an actor, we can live up to 70 years or so, I think."
Though his words may come as a relief to his die-hard fans, it may not go down well with struggling young actors who are trying to find a toe-hold in films. Mohanlal has often been slapped with the allegation that he squashes new talent.
"Like you said, it is just an allegation. I don't think I have the power to stop a talented actor from taking on a role. Even in other fields like politics and journalism, I am sure such allegations come up. It's just a rule created by somebody but not necessarily true.
"On the contrary, I think we are desperate for some fresh blood in the industry. What we need right now is talented young writers and directors with a fresh perspective. People talk about the quality of cinema, but where is the talent? The Malayalam industry needs a revolution."
His words gain poignancy with a look at his recent catalogue of films, which include some forgettable and cheesy potboilers like 2008's Madambi and College Kumaran. The sight of him romancing actresses half his age has also been criticised.
"I was a part of an era - say the '80s and '90s - which was simply great. But that's over now. People often ask me, 'Why is it that you can't make another Pattana Pravesham?' [his 1988 hit comedy]. And my response is if you want to relive those moments, just rent a DVD. Those days are in the past."
He is equally philosophical about sharing screen space with the young heroines.
"In real life, we still hear of 80-year-old men marrying twenty-something girls. So what's the problem in enacting that in films? I still feel young at heart."
Mohanlal's take on...
Hits and flops:
"They don't affect me. I have reached a point in my career where I live in the present. I am not interested in postmortems."
His business ventures in Dubai [such as restaurant Tastebuds] going bust:
"I am not a businessman and I have never claimed to be one. At that point, opening a restaurant sounded interesting and I took it on. I have no regrets."
Acting in Bollywood:
"I don't demarcate between South Indian films and Bollywood. Acting at the end of the day is all about lights, camera, action!"
Mohanlal festival
Mohanlal's 30 years in Indian cinema will be celebrated with a week-long festival. 200 caricatures and rare photographs of Mohanlal are exhibited and being sold at the Bubble Lounge, next to Shaikh Rashid Hall near the World Trade Centre. A musical, Lal Salaam, will be performed on Thursday at Shaikh Rashid Hall. Mohanlal will host the show and take his fans down memory lane. The same show will be staged in Abu Dhabi the following day at the National Theatre. For details, call 050-9555095.
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