To say that Naseeruddin Shah is one of the finest Indian actors is pretty obvious to anyone familiar with Indian cinema. One of the finest actors anywhere ever? Now that’s probably more like it. In his illustrious acting career spanning more than 45 years, the veteran actor has given us gems such as Aakrosh, Sparsh, Masoon, Junoon, Mandi, Ardh Satya, Katha and Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro among numerous others. Motley Productions, the theatre group he formed along with Tom Alter and Benjamin Gilani completed 40 years in 2019.

In an exclusive chat with TMM, the talented actor shared his thoughts on theatre, the OTT space which he clearly seems to be enjoying and working with some of the best from the industry.

You were forced to stay away from theatre for almost eight months and returned to it last year with Einstein. How did it feel to be back on stage? Did you feel the same rush, even with half the audience?
I felt the same rush even when there was no audience! During the lockdown we read stories and poems online several times, even performed Act 1 of ‘Godot’ to celebrate the fortieth year we’ve been doing the play. And apart from it being great fun, it gave us the all-important lesson that there should be no lessening of intensity in performance quality even if no one is present. The audience is not the thing to focus on but the job we’re doing.

During the lockdown, you read quite a bit of Shakespeare and Faiz. Apart from these two, who were the authors you enjoyed discovering or re-connecting with?
I read all of Shakespeare I was unfamiliar with and there were about twenty such plays! Apart from him and Faiz, I also began to read Sahir Ludhianvi and re-read Anthony Burgess and Evelyn Waugh, both absolute masters of the English language.

On the OTT front, there was Bandish Bandits followed by Mee Raqsam. When you look at the online space, does the quality of work excite you? Is it a platform where you see yourself doing a fair amount of work in the future?
I definitely look forward to working on the OTT platform because there are (yet) no hindrances to the creativity of such projects but I guess it’s a matter of time before our all-knowing government decides to bung a spanner into the works by regulating the content on OTT and we all know what that means.

You have spent more than 45 years in the film industry. What is the one thing that has remained unchanged for you as an actor? And what is the one thing you are glad has changed?
The one thing that has remained unchanged is the lousy quality of mainstream movies and my own love for my work and my desire to do the best I can in whichever medium I happen to work. The refreshing change however is the recognition of outstanding actors such as Sanjay Mishra, Pankaj Tripathi, Giriraj Rao, Gulshan Devaiah etc and it’s a great mercy that the fossilized assistants of yore, who did nothing but look busy, have been consigned to the dustbin and replaced by a generation of enthusiastic savvy youngsters, none of whom wants to stay an assistant all their lives.

Among the current crop of actors, who do you consider some of the finest?
It’s unfair to pick a few out of the lot and hail them as ‘the best’ because an actor’s output is totally dependent on too many factors beyond his control. The very same actor can be brilliant in one job and dreadful in another depending on the quality of the material he is working in.

In these 45 years or more, you have worked with some brilliant directors and some really talented co-stars. Is there anyone you wish you could have worked with more? Or an actor or director you have never got a chance to work with and you wish you had done something?
I wish I had worked in a Vijay Anand film. In his prime he was, in my opinion, the finest filmmaker Hindi cinema has had. And of course, I would have loved to act with Mr Bachchan.

You are known to speak your mind. You don’t mince words. Do you see that quality as a boon or have you at any time regretted any of the things you have said?
Don’t know if it’s a boon or what but no I have never regretted anything I said nor have I ever withdrawn a statement I made.

If there is one piece of advice the 70-year-old Naseeruddin Shah would give his 25-year-old self, what would be it?
“Life will teach you how to act but it won’t teach you how to sing and dance young man, so get working on both those disciplines.”

Words: Deepali Singh