Ashwath Bhatt, who recently played the role of former Pakistan president General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq in Mission Majnu, says that throughout his career, he has made a conscious effort to ensure that each of his roles is different from the other. Ashwath says that he doesn’t mind being called an underrated actor, but what he finds hurtful is that actors in a star-obsessed system often do not receive enough recognition or publicity, and even have to fight for credits. And so, whenever he sees someone finally getting the recognition they deserve, he feels it is divine justice for at least one such actor.

Sharing an example of how he gets into a character, Ashwath says, “I’m playing a role in a film that is yet to come out, and before every scene I would start singing a song that transports me into that character’s world. Similarly, for my role in Raazi, I worked on finding answers (to questions) like ‘how would he look when he’s in family gatherings? How would he react? How would he address his father?’ These are small things. And one is fortunate when one has a director like Meghna Gulzar, who is a very tough taskmaster. I’m really lucky that all directors I have worked with, like Mira Nair and Vishal Bhardwaj, would come prepared with all their notes.”

What happens when the director is not as clear as Meghna? He says, “If the other person doesn’t know his job or is not clear about something, then you find a way to save yourself.”

Ashwath says that when it comes to choosing films, he is more concerned about whether the role excites him rather than the screen time. He says, “Every time a role is offered to me – and they go into great descriptions – I always ask a basic question, ‘Yeh batao ki main kar kya raha hoon iss film mein?’ If you look at reputed awards like Golden Globes or the Academy Awards, you will find many examples of actors receiving awards for very short screen time. So screen time doesn’t bother me. But every part I take, there has to be something that triggers me to do it. There has to be something that clicks in my mind.”

Nawazuddin Siddiqui told us back in 2012, “Big films mein aisi soch hai ki ‘this man doesn’t have star status, toh isko paisa na diya jaaye’.” Has anything changed since then?

Ashwath says, “Our industry is star driven, and you have to accept this fact. You cannot deny this. It was true 15 years back and it is true now. Actors who put in huge amounts of efforts, who lift the film and bring credibility to stars are the most neglected lot.”

Talking about the nepotism debate, Ashwath says, “Everybody wants to promote their own kids, so what’s wrong with that? Suppose I give my life to the film industry and my kid wants to be an actor, I wouldn’t want them to go through all the struggles I have gone through. Aisa nahi hai ki kissi ko chance nahi mil raha. But what hurts is when talent is not promoted by production houses. They don’t even acknowledge (some actors) and that is something which is not nice. If you are promoting your child, then you must also promote those actors who are uplifting your child’s performance.”

Ashwath says that when he read that film critics described him as a highly underrated actor in Mission Majnu, he thought, ‘Thank God! I’m not overrated’. “I’m quite okay with being underrated, because our industry is full of overrated people. Somewhere, you have to find your own calmness, your own space and nothing is gonna come out of bitterness. I believe you just keep doing your job. Things will happen in their own time. I was never in this rat race,” he says.

Does that mean Ashwath is not in search of stardom? He says, “It would not hurt me if stardom comes to me. Well, stardom is (pauses)...if you nourish a tree then some or the other day, fruits will appear. ” 

Ashwath says that his journey has been very challenging and enjoyable. “I won’t say satisfying, because the day I get satisfied is the day I will die. It’s been a beautiful journey. However, there’s still a lot to come. As an artiste, I’m hungry.”

Actors such as Shefali Shah, Jaideep Ahlawat and Pratik Gandhi became huge stars because of OTT, and Ashwath says that he genuinely feels happy for actors who get their due after putting in decades of hard work.

“It is cathartic for me, and I say, ‘Yaar, inko mila na, great! Inko milna chahiye’. Everything is not in your hands and that’s the nature of this job. One part can change your life. One song can change your life.”

Ashwath says, “In 90% films, the whole publicity is given to only two people, who are the leads. Of course, films like Raazi, Pink, Jolly LLB and Badhaai Ho are also there – where the entire cast gets publicity – but that is an exception. Everybody is not hungry for money, but every actor is hungry for recognition. Every artiste needs appreciation. It nourishes them. But we’re not even given proper credit. People tell me, ‘you got your fee, now move on’, but it is about respect and nothing else.”