It took Pankaj Tripathi almost 15-18 years to get recognition in the film industry. His acting journey is often compared to those of acclaimed actors like Irrfan, Manoj Bajpayee, and Nawazuddin Siddiqui. None of them had one early breakthrough movie, and their path to fame demanded decades of constant hard work. At a recent session, he was asked if he would ask actors struggling for decades, clinging to the belief that ‘If Irrfan, Nawaz, and Pankaj Tripathi made it, so will I,’ to quit the profession and try something else.

Pankaj replied, “Hum keval abhineta nahi hain. Hum hope bhi hain. Zindagi ummeedon pe hi tiki hui hai toh ye kaise kehde ki tum ummeed chhor do? Kaise kehde ki 15 saal kuch nahi hua, toh tum ummeed chhor do? In my own life, things started happening after the age of 38. Nowadays, I see young people giving up hope at the age of 25-26, not just in cinema but in other professions too. Ummeed pe jeevan tika hua hai.”

Speaking at his masterclass on acting, ‘Unique Swagger in Every Role,’ at the 54th IFFI, Pankaj revealed that when he goes on sets, directors tell him, “Aap apna wala kar do.” He added, “Lekin main sochta hoon ki main kitne din apna wala karunga? Audience bore ho jayegi. Audience also expects that the actor will do the same thing. An actor like me has the freedom to experiment. Agar stardom ka darza mil jaye toh hum apne hi create kiye hue aura aur mannerism mein phans jate hain. There are actors who have created an image and then they have to live up to that image in their films and in real life. It is quite visible that they are trapped. For an actor, to be creatively alive it is very crucial that we keep experimenting. Sometimes those experiments will be rejected, but we must try.”

In recent years, Pankaj has been doing back-to-back films and web series. He shared that he analyses the backstory and nuances of his characters to ensure that each one is different. Doesn’t it bother him that he might end up repeating himself? Pankaj said, “I don’t get scared of repetition, but I do analyze it. When we act in a web series, we have to repeat the same role for seasons 1, 2, and 3. I can’t change my face, and even as I experiment with my body language, it can’t be done beyond a point. But I look at it like a painting. Ten paintings by a painter might seem the same. However, if you look closer, you’ll notice they all have different fine nuances. My characters in Mirzapur and Gurgaon are of similar nature but not the same – while the look is the same, both of them have different nuances. If you look at them closely, all (the characters) are different because I created their back story in my mind.”

When asked how he ensures that success never goes to his head, Pankaj said, “Iskeliye adhyatm (spirituality) ki zaroorat padti hai. Almost 15 years ago, I came to this place (Goa’s Kala Academy) for an acting course, and no one knew me at that time. So, 15 years ago, no one recognized me, and it’s possible that 15 years later, no one will recognize me again. Toh sab dharatal pe aa jate hain ki ye sab mithya hai, duniya ek rangmanch hai, jis rangmanch pe tumhara abhi character chal raha hai, aur ek din ye character flop hoga.”

The audience burst out laughing when Pankaj told them that he is evaluating whether he is actually a humble person or if it’s a persona that he has created. He said, “Aaj kal mere baare mein ek chhavi ban gayi hai ki main bahut humble aadmi hoon. Ab main mulyankan (evaluate) kar raha hoon ki main genuinely itna humble aadmi hoon ya main bahut tej aadmi hoon jo humble hone ka abhinay kar raha hoon. Gussa aata hai mujhe bhi, badle ke bhav bhi aate hai, sochta hoon badla lunga – within a second dusra khayal aata hai – chhoro dost, kya time waste hoga.”

Talking about the role of money in his life, Pankaj said, “Jeevan safal toh ho gaya, sarthak kaise hoga? Toh woh 10 lakh ke joote khareedne mein na jaye. Main middle-class aadmi hoon, middle-class soch hai. Jab income tax bharne jata hoon, tab pata chalta hai ki main middle-class nahi hoon. CA mujhe kehta hai aap super rich category mein hain. Main kehta hoon main toh middle class aadmi hoon, toh kehte hain ‘aapka account middle-class nahi hai.’”

He added, “Paisa ka koi mayna (value) nahi hai. 6/6 ke bed pe sote hain, wahi roti khaate hain, aur duniya ki sabse mehengi cheez ye ghadi (watch) hai, jo patni ne diya hai. Isse pehle mujhe ghadi pasand nahi thi. Ab mere paas ek costume designer bhi hai, jo kehta hai ki kapde dohrao mat. Main kehta hoon, ‘Chup raho tum. Main wahi pehnunga.’”