Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; December 13, 2017)

Amidst rumours that he will be playing father to Salman Khan in Race 3, Anil Kapoor says that he doesn’t understand the industry’s obsession with essaying young characters on screen. The actor, who did not bat an eyelid before playing the stern patriarch to Priyanka Chopra and Ranveer Singh in Dil Dhadakne Do (2015), says he has “never been delusional” about his age. “Throughout my career, I have done roles that suit my personality and I feel that is the reason for the longevity of my career. I always look at the script and my character. The character can be that of a father, grandfather, son or even an uncle — it doesn’t matter to me,” he reasons.

From Brad Pitt playing an 80-year-old in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) to Diane Lane playing Clark Kent’s mother in Man Of Steel (2013), Kapoor points out how, in Hollywood, the onscreen age of an artiste is not a criterion while choosing scripts. “It is only in India that these things are given importance. In the West, no one questions an actor playing an older role.”

Over the weekend, Kapoor hosted the season premiere of The Grand Tour, a British motoring television series for Amazon Video. Having understood the potential of the Internet, the actor is set to announce a web series under his banner. “Web streaming platforms are the future. We already have so many web shows that people are consuming. This is another avenue that has opened up the market in a big way.”