Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah has played many roles in his four-decade-long career in Bollywood but one that he specifically loves to play is the role of a villain — he feels characters with a nicer streak come across as rather boring on the big screen. In his upcoming film Jackpot, the actor will once again play an evil character and he seems pretty excited about it.
“I personally love my performances in Bombay Boys and Mirch Masala. It’s fun to play such characters. It’s very boring to play the nice guy and I only like to play that role in real life,” the 63-year-old said.
Jackpot also stars Sachiin Joshi and Indo-Canadian porn star-turned-actor Sunny Leone. They are still new to the industry, and Naseeruddin says working with new actors has never been an issue for him.
“It’s not a new thing for me to work with newcomers. If I have done 250 films in my career, then 150 have been with new directors and as an actor, I was also new once. So I have no issues working with new actors. Both Sachiin and Sunny are professionals and devoted,” he said.
Naseer’s paternal side
Unlike other fathers, who plan perfect launches for their sons, Naseeruddin has set his children free to find their own way, like he once did himself.
The 63-year old has two sons, Imaad and Vivaan, with his second wife, actor Ratna Pathak Shah.
“Both will find their own way. I let them make their own decisions. I don’t give them any advice because nobody gave me any advice. If they are desperate and ask for advice, then I give (it). I let them find their own answers to their problems,” Naseer said.
Imaad entered showbiz in 2006 and has been a part of Yun Hota To Kya Hota, Dil Dosti Etc and 404 Error Not Found, among other films. Vivaan was seen in Vishal Bharadwaj’s 7 Khoon Maaf.
One of the icons of parallel cinema, Naseer blazed a trail with his performances in films like Nishant, Manthan, Sparsh, Aakrosh and Masoom.
When asked what keeps him going, he said there are several things that motivate him to do films.
“I do films only if I feel like doing them, but there may be a variety of reasons (behind) why I feel like doing them,” he said. “Some because of the script, some because it’s fun, some because I want to work with a particular director and some, because of the money — so there are various reasons.”
Naseeruddin is currently busy wrapping up Dedh Ishqiya where he carries forward his character Khalu Jaan from his 2010 hit Ishqiya, which also saw him in a grey character.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 7th, 2013.
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