The actor, who was shooting in Delhi, talks about his memories of Chandni Chowk, his second innings in films and the challenges Bollywood is currently facing
Divya Kaushik (BOMBAY TIMES; December 19, 2017)

"I will put on some extra kilos by the time I will finish shooting here,” says Rishi Kapoor, as he finishes eating kadhi pakoda and rice, while shooting in Chandni Chowk’s Kinari Bazar, Delhi, for his upcoming film Rajma Chawal. “It is no doubt that the food here is simple, but extravagant. Every evening, when we are not eating from outside, either people in the neighbourhood cook food for the entire crew and send it, or it comes from the house of the person working with us. I am touched by this sweet gesture. Apart from this, how much can you avoid samosa, jalebi and kachori that you get here after all? Even my early memories of Chandni Chowk are all about food. I visited Red Fort and Jama Masjid as a child and I remember that when my father would come here, we would get food from different eateries,” says Rishi, who is shooting in Old Delhi for the first time in his career.

‘I HAVE NEVER DONE AS MUCH WORK IN MY LIFE AS I AM DOING NOW’
In his second innings in Bollywood where he got to play different roles in Agneepath, Patiala House and Kapoor & Sons and now Rajma Chawal, Rishi says he “actually got a chance to ‘act’”. “I think the 70s, 80s and 90s were all about wearing colourful sweaters and dancing around trees, but now, I am getting to do ‘acting’ roles. What is also interesting is that every character of mine looks very different. I have never done as much work in my life as I am doing now. My three films are ready for release and they are all different. Today, writers and directors are willing to work with actors my age and this is also happening because good content is now ruling cinema. People are fed up of formula films and we are getting new space to experiment,” says Rishi. He adds that one film that he is looking forward to is 102 Not Out with Amitabh Bachchan. “There is also Mulk, which is an interesting, hard-hitting film that addresses the system today,” he says.

‘I FEEL VERY SORRY FOR SANJAY LEELA BHANSALI’
On the controversy around Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati and many states deciding to ban it,the actor says that it is unfair to ban a film without even seeing it. “I am not in a position to comment on what is happening, but I feel very sorry for my fellow filmmaker friend Sanjay Leela Bhansali. How can you come to the conclusion without even seeing the film? You have to see the film and then react. That way you even influence the Censor Board. I am ashamed that in this country you put a bounty on someone’s head. Is this democracy? They (the actors and filmmaker) have police protection, but why hasn’t the government reacted and arrested those people. How can you bl**dy threaten someone in the open? It is easy to target Bollywood. Government does what it wants to do — if they have politicized the situation it is very sad. My heart goes out to Padmavati. Films are soft targets as they are a popular medium,” he says.