Suniel Shetty is back in action

Suniel Shetty is taking a U-turn and returning to where he started in Bollywood. The macho actor, who is taking a sabbatical from producing movies after facing losses, is pumping his muscles to crush some bones on the big screen. "There are plans to come back to action films. I am working hard on my body. It will be a patriotic film, something extraordinary," he said.

"The script is ready and I am playing a central character in the film. The action in it will be unbelievable. Hopefully, it will work." The actor had drifted from the action route with comic capers like Hera Pheri and Hulchul.

He, however, remained tight-lipped about his new project. "I wouldn't like to talk about it until it happens. It's just that they [the characters] are in the raw, in the jungle and up in the mountains. So there will be a lot of commando oufit action up there."

Suniel, who will turn 50 next year, is also pumping up for an age-defying body cover. "I am training hard for it. I am much leaner now and far more ripped than I was, but I want to go down even further. I want to be very sporty [more] than I have ever been," he stressed. "People believe they are getting older at 50, but I want to believe I am growing younger."

So will the movie be a home production? "No home productions right now because in the two years I produced films, I lost a lot of time as I was not acting. There's too much stress with productions." His banner Popcorn Motion Pictures incurred losses with projects like Khel and Rakht.

Suniel injected action as an Indian Schwarzenegger in his 1992 debut Balwan. While he jumped bridges to save women from goons and slithered in paint in a dark godown to break the antagonist's jaw, he turned into the contemporary He-Man of Bollywood. A Black Belt in kick-boxing, he kept the decade packed with muscle power in Waqt Hamara Hai, Mohra, Suraksha, Shastra, Rakshak, Krishna, Aakrosh and Dus, to name a few.

"I missed doing action films and I am happy that films like Wanted, Ghajini and Dabangg brought back action in such a big way. It is larger than life."

Apart from fame, the action image, however, proved fatal for Suniel when it came to comedy. "It [comedy] was something that came naturally to me but because of my structure and because of my action-hero image, people didn't accept me in that role. But I didn't want to do action as it was my forte. I wanted to change my image and I am working towards it."

In fact, Shetty's recent role in the Maoist drama Red Alert: The War Within received huge critical acclaim for his sensitive portrayal. Apart from action and comedy he also has to his credit patriotic outings like Border, Refugee and LOC: Kargil.

Looking back at his almost two-decade journey in Bollywood, Shetty recollects the highs and the lows and concludes, "The day I get out of the industry, I just want people to say, ‘he was a nice guy... he was a good actor and a good human being'. That's why I make a conscious effort to ensure that I don'thurt anybody."

A family man, who likes to keep a low-profile, the actor also owns restaurants specialising in Udupi cuisine, and clothing boutiques. "I am also trying to revive my water sports business in Mumbai," he says.

His projects include a venture on capital punishment and Thank You. Now, that's a lot packed in for this year.