Source: Daily Bhaskar
By: Onkar Kulkarni
Date: Jan 05, 2017
Just as his upcoming film Kaabil is set for a release Hrithik Roshan talks about the hardships he faced to play the role of a blind man in the Sanjay Gupta directorial. The actor also looks back upon the year 2016 that kept him in news for all the wrong reasons. In conversation he also speaks about the ‘star system’ of Bollywood and how he got inspired by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s Eye-donation Campaign. Read On…
Q Was 2016 a forgetful year for you, what with the Kangana Ranaut episode and the Mohenjo Daro fiasco?
No, in fact it was a memorable year. I think we grow because of the adversities. When you are at a gym how do you build muscles? You have to lift heavy weights that you cannot easily lift. Adversities, the struggles, the pressures are like gym to our mind. It is all because of them that one’s mind constantly searches a way out by becoming more strong and learning from your past experiences.
Q This year it’s Kaabil for you. Tell us what was the most difficult part of playing a blind role in the film?
The role of Rohan is one of the toughest ones I played till date. For the same I researched a lot about blind people. I met them, interacted with them and studied about the nuances. I had to practice thoroughly playing a blind man as I also had to do action and dance being blind!
Q Did you see any movies only to learn more about the nuances of playing a blind man?
I did see the Hollywood film Scent of a Woman (1992) starring Al Pacino. It was quite a good watch. I got to learn a few things from that film.
Q After meeting a lot of blind men and playing the role of a blind for Kaabil, do you feel like supporting the cause of eye-donation?
I had got the thought after watching Ash’s (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) eye-donation commercial on TV years ago. I thought if we could give someone sight then it will be so beautiful. Yes, and it has been on my mind since then.
Q Rakesh Roshan is very strict when it comes to punctuality, have you ever got scolded by him?
Daant nahi padi hai, but call zaroor aaya hai. Once or twice it happened, I was late on the sets and on my way I got a call from him asking me my where-abouts. I would get busy explaining him ki main aap hi ka kaam kar raha tha aur isliye late hua.
Q There have been much talks about the Kaabil versus Raees clash. We don’t get into that, just tell us what do you think of the Shah Rukh Khan starrer.
I loved the trailer of Raees, also the Laila Main Laila song is good.
Q Including you there are hardly any superstars in Bollywood like the Khans, Akshay Kumar etc. Do you think the concept of ‘superstars’ in Bollywood is dwindling away?
I don’t know. I can’t analyse that. I can only say that if it indeed is dwindling then it is a good thing. If the star system is diminishing then it’s a good sign for Bollywood. It will give scope for many filmmakers to look for more actors and actresses than being dependent on the four-five major names.
We need a lot more actors who do well in our film industry. Just having four-five big names is not healthy enough for us. If you see Hollywood you will get tired counting the number of talent they have there. ‘Star system’ is such that everybody wants to work with that star and there’s no scope left for the newcomers. Thus, good scripts only go to stars. I feel good scripts should go to someone who’s not a star and then becomes a star after its success.
To become good actors, the amateurs should take thorough training and do specialization in it. People should not just join films thinking it’s fun, but they should take acting as hard work, respect the profession and become more and more polished. I feel somewhere because of certain image of certain stars the young generation of actors feel that you just have to look ‘cool’, appear as a hero and say a line in style and you become a star. People should understand that an actor’s job is to be himself and communicate though their emotions right. For that, one needs to study and evolve as an actor.