“Characters might be funny but there is no character such as a comedian!” says Raghubir Yadav, who feels “comedians ka koi role nahin hota”.

Yadav admits that there was a time when people tried to stereotype him as a comedian and he did limited work. He says, “In the ’90s, I’d get only comic roles. But it was a chichora daur, and many actors would do cheap comedy for money. I turned down comic roles, struggled a lot and did roles I liked. I realised that people’s intentions in this business change due to money. After struggling, actors take on roles they don’t believe in just to earn money. Why lose your beliefs for the other’s pleasures?”

The senior actor, who is enjoying a variety of roles in the last few years including, the web show Panchayat and the film Jamun, is currently shooting for director Kaushik Ganguly’s Manohar Pandey. With films like Salaam Bombay (1988) and Bandit Queen (1994), to his credit, ask him about missed career opportunities, and he says, “I never think of such things. I don’t want to be negative. People say I didn’t get my due but what do they know what is my due? Kam kaam karke sukoon mila, zyada karke naa milta shaayad. I always worked for audiences’ appreciation. Maybe, I got more than my due (laughs).”