Pankaj Kapur lends his insight into the workings of the average Bollywood filmmaker in this Rediff interview.
Kapur is proof embodied that pedigree, looks or glamour ar unnecessary for the true artiste to shine. Displaying Holmes-ian peculiarties in Karamchand (Shut up, Kitty - Ah those politically incorrect days ... these days a kiss-ass female sidekick is likely to be analysed to death in blogs and columns ), a terrorist leader in Roja, or a beleagured don in Maqbool, Pankaj Kapur shone forth as a true Indian method actor. With the exception of Om Puri, probably no other actor has straddled TV and the theater and reached the pinnacle in both.
It is tribute to the genius of the man that he states it, matter-of-factly, that he cannot work on anything unless it is based on a "bound script". With the quality of roles that he has done, this comes across as really genuine and not an empty boast.
I would respectfully disagree with Kapur though when he places the blame of personality-based movies and TV shows on entities like the directors and TV channel bigwigs. The ultimate blame lies with the kind of sentimental majority of Indians that patronize these directors and shows that give them the power. Movies like Vivaah (Marriage isn't a game ..... Don't you want to just kill somebody sometimes) still rake in the moolah ...... nuff said.
But artistes like Kapur soldier on. We can only look on in awe at an artiste with complete mastery of his craft. Whether as the caricatured Tarneja in Jaane Bhi do Yaaro or the inward-looking terrorist in Roja, Pankaj Kapur has always inspired us ... Here's to more where that came from !
Kapur is proof embodied that pedigree, looks or glamour ar unnecessary for the true artiste to shine. Displaying Holmes-ian peculiarties in Karamchand (Shut up, Kitty - Ah those politically incorrect days ... these days a kiss-ass female sidekick is likely to be analysed to death in blogs and columns ), a terrorist leader in Roja, or a beleagured don in Maqbool, Pankaj Kapur shone forth as a true Indian method actor. With the exception of Om Puri, probably no other actor has straddled TV and the theater and reached the pinnacle in both.
It is tribute to the genius of the man that he states it, matter-of-factly, that he cannot work on anything unless it is based on a "bound script". With the quality of roles that he has done, this comes across as really genuine and not an empty boast.
I would respectfully disagree with Kapur though when he places the blame of personality-based movies and TV shows on entities like the directors and TV channel bigwigs. The ultimate blame lies with the kind of sentimental majority of Indians that patronize these directors and shows that give them the power. Movies like Vivaah (Marriage isn't a game ..... Don't you want to just kill somebody sometimes) still rake in the moolah ...... nuff said.
But artistes like Kapur soldier on. We can only look on in awe at an artiste with complete mastery of his craft. Whether as the caricatured Tarneja in Jaane Bhi do Yaaro or the inward-looking terrorist in Roja, Pankaj Kapur has always inspired us ... Here's to more where that came from !
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