Abhay Deol with mid-day’s entertainment editor Mayank Shekhar at the latest edition of Sit with Hitlist. Pics/Shadab Khan

Shortly after our conversation, before a live audience, Abhay Deol is scheduled to meet Shekhar Krishnamoorthy, the person he plays in the Netflix series, Trial By Fire — based on the life of a middle-class Delhi couple, who fought the city’s top real-estate developers, post the death of both their children, in the 1997 Uphaar Cinema fire tragedy.

Which is also when we realize Deol had chosen to consciously stay away from the real-life inspiration for his part, during the process of making the series. Deol is Punjabi by ancestry, unlike Krishnamoorthy, with the most Tamil surname. In fact, Deol has played a Tamilian before this.

That was as the bureaucrat Krishnan, for Dibakar Banerjee’s Shanghai (2012). In an episode dedicated to Deol’s films, on a podcast named Khabardaar, that I was listening to before meeting the actor, the hosts — shout-out to wonderful ladies, Aparita Bhandari, Baisakhi Roy—make an observation on Deol’s walk onscreen. They believe it is the same in all his films. Except, Shanghai, if you notice the minutiae.

Firstly does he agree, and was that consciously so, I ask Deol: “There are physical characteristics that I suppose you don’t change easily. You’re unaware of them. With Shanghai, that may be true. Not that I consciously worked on my walk, though. I did have to work on my accent. Krishnan is a Tamil Brahmin.”

“And I had to put on a Hindi, like a Tamilian would speak it, which is hard to find. Because no Tamilian really speaks Hindi — they speak to you in English. Also, we don’t have an infrastructure of accent training for actors in our country. So we found this out-of-work Tamilian writer, who I worked with, and developed a system [for it].”

If we must get deeper into this accent thing still, for instance, Deol recalls, “I hope I haven’t mixed up my memory, but I was really working on the phonetics — there is no ‘ha’ sound in Tamil, and there is no ‘ba’. In Tamil, you could pronounce my name closer to ‘Apaay’. Stuff like that was insightful. This is besides mimicking my accent-trainer off-camera — so I would know how he might say my dialogues.”

The ladies of Khabardaar podcast might wanna notice this the next time they watch Shanghai. Krsihnamoorthy in Trial By Fire, Deol points out, is different from Krishnan, because he’s a Tamilian, but essentially from Delhi.

He has what one could call a more neutrally North Indian or ‘Delhi’. Which is also a character Deol has played in Oye Lucky Lucky Oye (OLLO) — another real-life person he obviously didn’t meet, before playing him on screen. Bunty Chor was the local swindler, where would you find him?

OLLO (2008) tragically released in theatres, when the “the firings were still on” during 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai. My favourite memory of OLLO is an off-screen one from the film’s BTS video online, where a dog is after Bunty Chor (Deol), who’s jumping off a tall building-gate. Banerjee asks him to turn around for the camera, so the audience knows the lead actor performed this himself, instead of a body-double.

Deol says, “It’s fun doing stunts, as much as I can. I think Dibakar was a bit surprised about how easily I was scaling such a large gate, and he said he wanted people to see it!”

Sticking to Delhi, and characters inspired by actual events/people still, how about Anurag Kashyap’s Dev D (2009). I learnt this much after watching the film that the role was in fact somewhat based on Deol’s own life. Meaning, obsession in love, and indeed experiments with drugs. If true, kindly elaborate?

“Well, I wanted to contemporize the (Sarat Chandra Chatterjee) book, because I felt there was something wrong there — with such a male, patriarchal view of a man-woman relationship, where women are falling over Devdas. No matter what he does, he can never be wrong. I grew up in an environment, where drugs and alcohol were all available.”

“My Chanda (Kalki’s) character was far stronger than what eventually got made into the movie. She was an East European pole-dancing escort, who is fine the way she is — making great money, traveling the world. She takes pity on him (Dev). Obviously it worked for Anurag [that] she was as vulnerable as he [Dev], and she was a victim too. For me, he was the only victim. The women only grew stronger from there.”

Did he know the Polish escort? “I am not going to tell you! I know all sorts of people; let’s just put it that way. Yeah, I know a few escorts ‘n’ all.”

Let’s pause at the movie titles here: Banerjee’s Shanghai, OLLO. Kashyap’s Dev D. Also from a time when both Kashyap and Banerjee were the ‘new-age filmmakers’, early on in their directorial careers. I wonder what Deol thinks of the trajectory they took thereafter.

Frankly, he doesn’t have much to say, besides “conforming to commercial pressure” that becomes inevitable in some cases. He could sense the “creative genius of Banerjee in LSD (2010)”. As for Kashyap, I find it surprising that he hasn’t seen any of his films since Dev D! Not even Gangs Of Wasseypur (2012)? What; did they have a fallout or something, I ask.

“Well, [Kashyap] went in public, and said a lot of lies about me.”

For example? “One lie was that I demanded a [five-star] hotel room [during the shoot of Dev D]. He had actually come up to me and said, ‘Listen you can’t stay with us, you are a Deol. So, I want to put you up in a hotel room.’ He literally told me that. What he told the press was that I demanded it.” The reference here is to Deol’s profile published in Huffington Post (June 5, 2020).

He continues, “So, there was clearly a lot going on at the time, which was not professional. I had my heart on my sleeve, and all that is great — but you get taken advantage of, and then you get reactive. So, he [Kashyap] was a good lesson for me. Then I just avoided him, because I don’t need toxic people in my life. Life is too short, and there is so much more to explore. But he (Kashyap) is definitely a liar, and a toxic person. And I would warn people [about] him.”

This outburst is evidently in response to Kashyap’s quote about Deol in the Huffington Post report. Deol adds later, “I don’t look in the past. When Anurag said that crap about me in public, he sent me ‘apology’ messages.”

“He does that all the time. He was like, ‘You want to shout at me, scream at me…’ And I was like, ‘I don’t care. It’s been 12 years. You don’t feature in my thoughts even now; get over it.’ He said, ‘Forgive me, because I have had a bad day.’”

“I said you are forgiven. I never had a personal agenda. It was far bigger than just me. That is how I feel about everything. How much of this is he going to do? And I would have never taken his name and said the things, had he not gone public [either].” 

Raking this up is important only because lead actors, or stars, have always been the medium to tell stories on screen — even if in the off-stream space, so to say. And by the mid Noughties, Deol was at the centre, if not the pioneer, of a movement of sorts, within Bollywood—picking up young, untested directors to star in their scripts/films, on a leap of faith, first. 

“The first five movies of mine were all by first-time directors,” he recalls. Let’s pause again to name these debutants: Imtiaz Ali (Socha Na Tha), Shivam Nair (Ahista Ahista), Reema Kagti (Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd), Sanjay Khanduri (Ek Chaalis Ki Last Local), Navdeep Singh (Manorama Six Feet Under).

These are also films that got defined as Hindi commercial cinema, merging with an entertaining art-house — ‘H-indies,’ if you like. At least a couple of the directors did fairly well for themselves — after that firm footing in the film industry.

I can see why it’s got Deol a li’l pissed off now that I want him to dwell on what he thinks of their careers as well — he did like Ali’s Jab We Met, more than Rockstar, which in turn was still outside Ali’s usual “love-triangle zone”, and therefore a step-up: “Why am I commenting on all this — [is that] what the show/conversation is about?” Of course not.

I guess what we’re getting at is an oft repeated jibe that a lot of these directors — take Ali, for example, who got his debut due to Deol — never worked with him thereafter. Is that a fair observation, with anything deeper to it?

“And Anurag used to say, this is why directors [don’t work with me]… I know a lot of actors don’t want to work with him. But I see what you mean. Or where you are coming from. I did sense this feeling [later towards me]: ‘You know, you are not big enough!’”

“Which is ironic, because when I worked with them, neither were they! You either believe in someone, or a vision — even if it goes against the norm. Or you can say, I will keep my vision, but I will acquire bigger powers [to execute it]. Because I will get more money, I suppose. Also, I was taking a lot of it on myself, and I know I made mistakes. I am searching for answers to give you, and I hate making it about me, when it’s about somebody else.”

Consider the career graph. In terms of box-office plus cult-grade, Zoya Akhtar’s multi-starrer Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011) is possibly Deol’s high point. A string of seriously superb films right before, and after. And then there is s sharp slump 2013 onwards, almost a freefall. 

He’s had a release almost every year. So he’s very much been around since. The films/series are, again, by mostly first-time directors, or fresh talents, at any rate; experimental in their own right. 

You can have your views on, say, One By Two (2014), Happy Bhaag Jayegi (2016), Nanu Ki Jaanu (2018), Chopsticks (2019), What Are The Odds (2019)… Good or bad is a subjective take anyway. But you know, none of them are really, well, did he lose his mojo, how do I put it….

“It’s just a fact. You don’t have to justify [your question],” Deol comes to my rescue. As for the kind of work that comes your way, he says, “Everything is [a] collective [call]. And I don’t like talking about it, because I don’t want to come across sounding bitter, or a victim. I don’t care. But when you take a stand, then you take a stand. And that has consequences. Are you ready to face those consequences?”

Exactly what stand, for example, could do someone in? “I don’t know. Calling out people for endorsing fairness creams?” Would that mean those who endorse fairness creams would debar you right away? 

“It is not as simple as that. I did a guest appearance in Shah Rukh’s Zero, and he is a really dignified man. But there is a collective [thing that happens]. Say, showing up with a black eye on a red carpet, and calling out Bhushan Kumar by name, and saying T-Series blah, blah. Or constantly saying, why do we only have song and dance [in our films]…”

Deol has been equally vocal, in public, about critiquing his own films, with misplaced intentions — whether that be Aisha (2010), or Raanjhanaa (2013). Surely that’s hardly mastering the art of winning friends and influencing people. But you can tell—frankly, he doesn’t give a damn. And that’s what makes him more fun than the current crop of polite suckers for boring heroes. 

Also some of his criticisms could emanate from ideas he wished to champion, but found no takers, around that time. Navdeep Singh’s Basra famously got shelved. As did a zombie comedy called Rock The Shaadi, after shoot. I fish out an old video of him consulting a tarot card reader, in Simi Garewal’s TV show — to check if one of his dream projects would come true. 

Deol remembers it was an international film, with debutant filmmakers from abroad, who nobody wanted to put money on. They still haven’t made the film, and he had to stop trying eventually. 

“So yeah, post 2013, it was tough. I also took a backseat. Now I don’t want to go back and pretend like nothing ever happened, or be a different person — so, I am going to sit back, and see what comes my way. And quietly work. If that works, it works. If it doesn’t, so be it!”

As for the so-called song and dance, Deol says it’s not like he has an issue with the genre: “At least three ideas of mine are full of songs. One of them was Dev D (18 numbers in the soundtrack).” 

The film was a major winner at the box-office, for its budget. Deol remembers, “Especially after Oye Lucky and Dev D, I had a red-carpet entry to whoever I wanted to work with. And this is not just because I had successes behind me. Also because I was so-and-so’s son, nephew, brother…” 

Which puts him in a strange ‘middle’, in the nepotism debate, that is usually conflated to the ‘elite versus masses’ battle, pitched in the wider political/public space. Deol’s “anger and rebellion” within the family itself, he says, was his reaction to fame and its pitfalls. Something he had watched closely, growing up. Left to him, it appears, he’d rather be anonymous, but remain an actor — obviously a misnomer. 

“I was born an insider, but I pretty much lived as an outsider,” says Deol. That said, his debut film was a joint-family release, from Vijayta Productions — mainly helmed by cousin Sunny, son of Uncle Dharmendra. 

Interested in debutant Ali’s script, he took him to meet Sunny, who was happy to hop onboard the film, since the lead character was a lot like Abhay himself! Such is how Socha Na Tha was born, and two amazing careers took off. Only the film, that released during the low-key “exam-time, March” wasn’t hugely promoted as the proverbial ‘star is born’. Socha Na Tha is hugely loved still. 

Which reminds me, why is the Deol firm named Vijayta in the first place? “On my sister, my cousin — she is younger to Sunny Bhaiya. So, it’s Sunny Deol, Vijeta and Bobby Deol? “No. Then there is [another sister], Ajeita. Then there is Bobby.” 

Abhay’s father, late Ajit Singh Deol (Dharmendra’s brother), I hear, was also an actor. Except I couldn’t quite find a clip online to support this, I tell him. He smiles, “He did two movies, one of which he produced. They were all in the ’70s. One never got made. I remember Honey Aunty, Zoya’s (Akhtar) mum said the cutest thing to me once. That my father is the reason her film didn’t release. I was like, ‘What do you mean?’ She said that he had to hold her face, and he was shivering [through the scene]. She was the leading lady in that film. I didn’t even know it, because I never saw that movie!”

Insider-outsider is anyway a time/generation construct. Many of the outsiders Deol worked with at the beginning of his career are bona-fide insiders now. And maybe that’s what the revolt is about — to eventually get to the high table. The cycle continues.

“You hit success, then it doesn’t matter if you’re insider, or outsider. They all want to work with you. You have to understand it is also very cliquish — you are part of this, or that camp. I had access to all of them, but I was like, no!”

Living in the Deol household, he also had no “Bollywood Juhu gang” friends. Barring his schoolmate, director Vikramaditya Motwane, who wasn’t “Bollywood then”!

Everyone goes through their brash 20s — sometimes it lasts longer — “You wanna change the world!” I asked Deol what he thinks of, when he looks back at that decade, after which it appears, the world changes you, one way or the other!

Some of the things he says he’s learnt is being diplomatic —“also, not equating power and money, with corruption — that needn’t always be the case. Money is like energy, and it is something that you know you can make good use of — when you have a lot of it. I could do things a little smarter, to not be taken advantage of, or be gas-lit.

“Human condition is complex. Everything we have spoken about today are not black and white. You would think you’ve heard it all. There was a lot left out. Also, I am really lucky. I know I did create lot of trouble, but it was all intended for the right purpose. And I created change. People still refer to films I did 10-15 years ago.”

Which is true, once you glance at his filmography until 2013, starting 2005 — those who were born that year turn into adults in 2023, when we’re making this conversation with Deol, 46.

Also, in the intervening years, so much has changed with films itself: “The disruption we were looking at got brought in by technology itself.” So the ‘multiplex movie’ became ‘OTT content’.

Also, the Bollywood indie started hitting Rs 100 crore collections, with the likes of Ayushmann Khurrana, Rajkummar Rao. Deol was the OG ‘OTT star’, even before there were streamers: “I am not done yet. Maybe what I did was 20 years ahead [of its time]. Those 20 years have come!” Only the intentions may not be matching the outcomes for some time.

And then you watch Deol in Prashant Nair’s Trial By Fire on Netflix — a performance so subconsciously chilled, yet powerful. Without once making an unnecessary show of it. The series on the Uphaar Cinema fire tragedy is still about subtle and solid story-telling, that therefore makes the leads, the stars. Fair to say: welcome back, Abhay.

Abhay Deol and Rajshri Deshpande in Trial By Fire, which is based on the 1997 Uphaar cinema fire tragedy

Deepali Singh (DNA; June 6, 2019)

It was back in 2005 that Hrithik Roshan first visited Shanghai to train for the action sequences of Krrish. This time, the light-eyed actor was in the East Asian country for the release of his 2017 action-thriller, Kaabil. The superstar, who returned to Mumbai on Monday evening, shared that he had a great time there. “I was amazed and overwhelmed by the warm welcome I got,” he said.

While there, the superstar indulged in noodles and pancake-making sessions and even took a subway train ride to see the country in all its glory. His fans, who had been referring to him as Da Shuai (the handsome one), presented him with Chinese artefacts, which he’s brought back with him, along with all the amazing memories.

To his fans’ delight, the actor, known for his dancing skills, shook a leg on Ek Pal Ka Jeena from Kaho Naa...Pyaar Hai (2000). And one of his fans even sang the title track of Kaabil for him!

One of the highlights of his visit was his meeting with Jackie Chan. He even received a personalised jacket from the international star, something he would always cherish. Comparing his upcoming film Super 30 — inspired by the life of Mathematician Anand Kumar — to the country, he said, “The movie talks about the power as well as the value of education and teachers. And, I think that is a similarity between China and India. Both countries give a lot of respect to teachers,” he added.


The actor signs autographs for his fans

Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; January 13, 2019)

Emraan Hashmi has portrayed varied characters in a career spanning over 15 years, and proved his mettle in films like Awarapan (2007), Jannat (2008), Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai (2010) and Shanghai (2012). And finally, one can see the ‘serial kisser’ tag, which he unapologetically carried for years, wearing off. Known for playing morally ambiguous screen characters and the one to call a spade a spade, Emraan tells BT about his upcoming film Why Cheat India and how he is finally done with kissing on screen. Excerpts…

Your upcoming film, Why Cheat India, revolves around some of the problems plaguing our education system. Tell us about your character in the film...
Rakesh (his character) is not a torchbearer or a vigilante, he wants to make money and be successful. He finds a hack in the education system and goes down that road. He isn’t apologetic about what he does. He wonders why nobody is holding the system responsible for students’ suicides. Lack of seats in universities and the pressure it causes... no one’s addressing that. He feels that at least no one’s dying because of him.

Your wife, Parveen, is a co-producer on the film. Did any alarming personal experience convince you to make this film?
We are busy building colleges, but is knowledge being imparted there? Our education system is all about how much information you can withhold as opposed to sharing practical knowledge, analytical thinking or communication skills.

Education system teaches you two things — how to make a living and how to live. Sadly, our education system for most part teaches you the former and it’s not very good at it either. I don’t want to put my son through the torture that I went through as a child. I hated school and the homework. I used to daydream in class, while some wise teachers talked for eight hours a day. It’s a factory system that cultivates home-grown ‘yes men’. Emphasis is on things that you barely use in day-to-day life. Basic choices were science, maths, and engineering. Right now, arts has gone blazing ahead, but back then, it had no standing. Poetry or dance was looked down upon. Basically, you can’t enjoy what you study. I always found that appalling. Kids need to be kids. You can’t make them competitive by pitting them against each other and labelling them as winners and losers. I felt like a loser when I didn’t score a certain percentage. It affects their morale and self-esteem early on. Why Cheat India is a two-hour film, so we cannot show everything in it, but it does put the spotlight on these long-standing issues. It also emphasises on the scams that are built around the education system. You have to get rid of the age-old system and the middle men who are eating into it.

With socially relevant films like Why Cheat India, are you trying to reinvent your image as a hero?
I don’t see it as a reinvention. I don’t know how people will perceive or accept Rakesh. I did the film, because it’s a fantastic concept that hasn’t been explored in our country. I love taking risks. It’s relatable not just for students and educational faculties who are in denial, but also future parents. On the infrastructure front, though we are a country that’s blazing ahead, we could be going faster. The most important part is educating a child’s mind and if you can’t contribute to that, it’s a dark road ahead.

Lately, you have been working in films which have been a clear deviation from the kind of work that people have seen you doing in the past. Are you trying to keep pace with the changing trends of Hindi cinema?
Hindi cinema has changed in the past three years, but before that, in the kind of films that I did — and I don’t mean to dis them — I didn’t get to play ‘characters’. You get stuck in a box. You can’t step out of it, as the industry sees it as a safe bet. If you are a commercial actor, this is what you will have to do. Agar aapko arty film karni hai, toh aap Shanghai kijiye, which I did. It’s a divided industry. Certain critics understand cerebral cinema and they push for it, but there’s another side that dismisses it. Such films are closest to my sensibilities. Somewhere, I had to bend my sensibilities to cater to my audience and my country. I am not complaining, but it’s far from my world. Now, there is a new dawn. The audience and the industry have woken up. You can’t dole out shit year after year and expect it to work. We have had a couple of massive big-budget debacles last year and that’s because the audience’s intellect was taken for granted. It’s great that people now look forward to good subjects. Why Cheat India is one such topic.

Did you reach a point where you thought, ‘Not anymore! I can’t keep doing what I have been doing’?
I said that the first day I entered this industry (laughs!). I feel that you don’t look for scripts, the scripts find you. At least in the initial stage of your career, there are people who will say, ‘This kind of films work for him, let’s give him that only’. My need to explore myself as an actor along with the risk that producers took to make movies like Jannat, Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai, Shanghai and Awarapan helped add a different dimension to me. These films are the reason why people feel that I can do a Why Cheat India. I could have done this long ago, but growth and maturity takes time. Ten years ago, good scripts rarely came my way. Ghanchakkar (2013) was ahead of its time. People dismissed it because they didn’t understand the comedy. It is relatively easier for these new-age talented actors like Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Rajkummar Rao, Vicky Kaushal and Ayushmann Khurrana, because the scripts have evolved.

Today, do films solely work on content, as opposed to entertainment?
Not just content. Through a documentary, I can reach a few houses, but by bringing in the commercial element, retaining the script’s authenticity and not making it a jingoistic fest, you can reach millions of people. Films can’t bring about a change overnight, but it can get the conversation started.

Looking back, do you feel that films like Raaz Reboot(2016) and Murder (2004) restricted you to a certain image as the bad boy of Bollywood? Did such roles hinder your growth as an actor?
Bollywood is like a dish in which you add various ingredients to add tadka. It follows norms and is formulaic. Everyone has had their share of massy films. Fight hai, paanch gaane daal doh, film chal jayegi. But after a while, it has changed. I am here because of films like Raaz and Murder, but I am not the same guy I was 15 years ago! Lot of things happened after that. Marriage changes you, your child changes you. That change has to reflect in your films, or you stagnate. I wanted to grow as an actor and it was frustrating when it didn’t go my way. Now, I am happy with the roles that I am doing. I choose scripts that make me happy as opposed to what will work.

Almost every actor today has no qualms about kissing on screen, but the serial kisser tag refuses to leave you...
I am done with it. I am letting it go now, because I am just fed up of it. Kissing is fine. I don’t have an issue with kissing on screen, but it’s what happens after that. Everyone puts the spotlight on whether I have a kiss in a film or not. My producers have been guilty of using the kissing scenes for promotions of films, but I feel things are different today. Youngsters are okay with it. Call it a generation gap or anything, but I shut my ears on hearing half the things. It’s a culture shock for me! I fear for my son when he grows up (laughs!).

Have you ever wondered why you never get offered noble, righteous or heroic characters?
I think it’s my face (laughs!). I don’t look like a noble person. I am not saying nobility doesn’t exist in society, but I also feel that it’s a big sham. Anyone who says that they haven’t done anything wrong in their life is a big scam artiste. We all function in grey zones. I hate people who pretend to be saints. I won’t touch them with a barge pole. I can’t stand their holier than thou attitude. I look for a certain reality in films. A man who saves the day, does everything right or is super sweet... a hero like that doesn’t exist.

Upala KBR (MID-DAY; January 26, 2018)

The past five days may have been frenetic for Aamir Khan, but he is not complaining. The superstar is on a whirlwind tour across China, promoting Secret Superstar. When he is not reaching out to his fans or attending press conferences, Khan has been taking in all that China has to offer - from trying out their delicacy to playing a round of table tennis.

Turns out, during his Shanghai visit on Monday, the superstar set out to taste authentic Chinese cuisine with his good friend, Chinese actor-director Deng Chao. A source in the know reveals that Chao made him try a special Chinese dish called Century Egg. "As Aamir was about to pop one into his mouth, Deng warned him that a recent CNN poll rated it as one of the world's most horrible foods. However, Aamir enjoyed the dish," says the source.

Another event in Shanghai saw the actor match his table tennis skills with Liu Guoliang. The Olympic gold medallist gifted an autographed racquet to Khan, who reciprocated by gifting him a guitar.

With the Zaira Wasim-starrer marking Khan's fourth film to release in China, he has built a steady audience in the neighbouring country - fans have given him the moniker 'Uncle Aamir'. The source adds, "There was a special event organised for Aamir. Since Jackie Chan couldn't attend it, he sent across a video message, welcoming Aamir back to the country." Talking about Secret Superstar's success in China, Khan said, "I'm happy to see the way the film resonated with the youth of China."

Box-office superstar
China got a taste of Aamir Khan's box-office pull as Secret Superstar earned Rs 265 crore in less than a week of its release. With this, the Chinese collections have surpassed the lifetime earnings in India of Rs 64 crore. The film that hit screens in China on January 19 raked in Rs 174 crore over the first weekend, besting Dangal's opening weekend collection of Rs 80 crore.


Khan having Century Egg with Deng Chao

As told to Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; October 16, 2017)

Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; August 9, 2017)

Strained diplomatic relations between India and China, owing to the tense situation at the border, has affected the shoot of Tiger Shroff’s Baaghi 2, which was expected to kick-off in Shanghai.

A source close to the production house tells mid- day that though producer Sajid Nadiadwala had stated that the team had struck a deal with the Chinese Government, who invited them to the country to film the actioner, the strained Sino-Indian ties have called for a change in plan. “The film will now be shot in Pune, followed by a schedule in Ladakh, Bangkok and Mumbai. The China schedule has been put on hold for now.”

In April, mid-day had reported that Shroff was set to fly down to China to undergo martial arts training under action choreographer Tony Ching. “The action in this sequel will be several notches higher. Thankfully, I have Tony Ching,” Shroff had said. However, it appears that the actor will now head to Hong Kong for the practice.

Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 26, 2016)

Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; July 13, 2016)

After Tiger Shroff and Shraddha Kapoor starrer Baaghi set the cash registers ringing this April, producer Sajid Nadiadwala announced at the ensuing success bash that the film had made a 100 per cent profit at the box-office and was one of the most satisfying projects of the year for him.

Now, Mirror has learnt that the entire team is set to reunite for a sequel to the action-romance, which kicks off in January, 2017 in Shanghai. Sabbir Khan, who has earlier directed Tiger in Heropanti and Baaghi, has also signed Tiger for a third film, Munna Michael, which rolls this September. "It was earlier decided that Baaghi 2 would kick off by the year-end, however, Munna Michael will take off first, while Tiger and Shraddha will return together only next year," reveals a source close to the development.

Meanwhile, instead of taking the story forward, the sequel is touted to be a completely different film but with the same theme and premise. One portion will be shot in India and the other one in China. Turns out, the Ministry of Tourism of China reached out to Sajid's banner, inviting the makers to shoot upcoming films in the country. Sajid confirmed the reports to Mirror, adding, "It's been a great experience working with Sabbir, Tiger and Shraddha and the Baaghi story needs to be taken ahead. We plan on starting the shoot in Shanghai in 2017."

Sabbir added, "Action and romance are my signature themes and I love working with Sajid bhai since he is an extremely director-friendly producer. He stands in the background like a pillar, letting the director do his job to the best of his ability. The film is still being scripted and casting for a fierce villain is underway. We'll just have to wait and watch now."

BOMBAY TIMES (May 11, 2016)

Dibakar Banerjee is set to return the national award for his first film, Khosla Ka Ghosla, in solidarity with FTII students and to protest rising intolerance. The filmmaker tells Anahita Mukherji that his decision is not politically motivated and that the country needs the BJP as a viable and successful national alternative in order to function as a democracy
Anahita Mukherji (THE TIMES OF INDIA; November 1, 2015)

The actor who has been missing in action after his last outing One By Two, talks about his plans
Subhash K Jha (DNA; March 4, 2015)


It’s been a while since we saw you on screen. Where are you? Have you migrated to the US?
(Laughs) I haven’t migrated to the US!

Your last Bollywood outing One By Two proved to be damaging on many counts. In hindsight, do you think it was premature for you to turn producer?
Nope, I learnt a lot in my outing as a producer and it has opened many new doors for me. In life you only learn by taking chances.

You also took on the music mafia in Bollywood. Is there a sense of vinidication since now Zee Music has opened up as a feasible alternative route for movie producers to release their soundtracks?
It’s good that Zee has opened up their own company. I hope in the future, filmmakers have more than one or two choices. For a market to thrive, there has to be a level playing field for all professionals.

In spite of such thoughtful performances in recent films like Shanghai and Chakrvayuh why do we see so little of you on screen?
It’s a media-driven world and I guess I need to be more media savvy. I’m also very picky with my films. It’s hard to find the right fit. After so many years I still need to fit in! I’ve heard many people say that to me. Maybe that is true maybe or maybe that is not, I believe if a filmmaker wants to work with you and use you for what you have then he/she will do it. That’s how both Oye Lucky and Dev.D happened.

Do you think American filmmakers take Bollywood seriously?
American filmmakers, as I have understood, look at Bollywood with an amused curiosity. Musicals, traditionally, are rare in Hollywood, so that automatically puts all of Bollywood into one genre. Bollywood also relies much more on spectacle than Hollywood barring the superhero movies. Bollywood for them is a genre by itself. The word brings up images of bright colours, music, spectacle, beautiful women and muscular men. Funnily enough, most of them haven’t seen any Bollywood film but the name is something they are aware of. Oxford dictionary, zindabad!

Which films so far have been the most satisfying and most unfulfilling for you?
Most satisfying would be Dev.D, Shanghai and Manorama Six Feet Under. They were heavily driven by the characters. Least satisfying would be the ones where I didn’t have much to do. I leave that to you to decide!

You’ve always been a bit of a maverick. I remember you did a course in welding?
Ups and downs come and go, the important thing is to live them fully and understand them. The more experiences you have, the more you understand as long as you remain open.

Any chances of turning director in the near future?
Right now, most of my focus is on the acting and producing front. All my energies are concentrated on making the next film that will break the mold. I have no plans to turn director, I wouldn’t go there until I feel sure that I am ready.

When do we see you and Preeti Desai tie the knot? How would you define your relationship with her?
(Laughs) I’m often asked this question! Not anytime soon. I don’t define relationships that can’t be. It’s everything and nothing at the same time. The kind that that makes you learn how to live and how to be.

When do you return to India?
I will return soon. I’m having too much fun here in the US! I have two confirmed projects back at home, a big commercial film and a small offbeat radical one. I may have found the perfect balance.

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 1, 2014)

Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; August 5, 2014)

There are actors who venture out of their comfort zones and then there are those who want to play it safe. And while the former option sounds very exciting, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. Indeed, some actors have successfully straddled both worlds of cinema – the commercial and the art house variety. But there’s also a segment of names out there who tried to make inroads in alternative cinema only to come back to their forte: commercial ( read: masala) films.

Money over acclaim
An instance that comes to mind is Emraan Hashmi. The actor said in a recent interview that while he has done some serious films in his career (Dibakar Banerjee’s Shanghai is one such film), he is now returning to commercial cinema with Raja Natwarlal.

The serial kisser even admitted that it’s the commercial films that help him earn his bread and butter. Turns out that despite getting good reviews, Shanghai didn’t recover its money and the actor decided to stay away from offbeat cinema since then.

In his career spanning over two decades, Akshay Kumar is known to have done several out-and-out action and comedy films. Till date, he hasn’t veered off course except the one time when he joined hands with Nagesh Kukunoor for the film, 8X10 Tasveer. The film was stuck for quite some time and the title, Tasveer, was changed because it was considered to be jinxed. To add to this, when it finally released, it garnered negative reactions from both audiences as well as the critic. This meant that the actor learnt that non- commercial cinema was not for him. Since then, he has gone back to doing masala films.

Learning their lessons
Among actresses, Kareena Kapoor debuted at age of 20 with Refugee. After the initial phase of her career where she did a few commercial films, she decided to give offbeat dramas a chance. As a result, films such as Chameli, Dev and Omkara followed. And while she did win appreciation for having taken up these films at an early stage in her career, she did a rethink later on. Now the actress is open about her preference for masala films.

Similarly, over a decade ago, Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukerji had starred in Amol Palekar’s Paheli, but SRK realised that he wanted to go back to delivering blockbuster hits.

Failed experiments?
Sonakshi Sinha displayed her acting skills in Vikramditya Motwane’s Lootera. The film did good business at the box office and even garnered a lot of praise from the critics. That said, it didn’t win any awards, a fact that had the cast and crew all riled up. Snubbed at most award dos, Sonakshi and co-star Ranveer Singh took to social networking sites where they expressed their displeasure. And then they both gladly moved on to starring in mainstream cinema.

Saif Ali Khan took a risk by featuring in Homi Adjania’s maiden project Being Cyrus, as it was an English film. Encouraged by the response, he played an intense character in Omkara. And while this role was also well-appreciated, Saif seemed to have had enough with alternative cinema. Since then, the actor hasn’t taken up any such films.

Vidya Balan may have starred in many women-oriented projects, but post Kahaani, she has apparently shied away from non-commercial films. The National Award - winning actress’s recent filmography, which has masala films like The Dirty Picture, Ghanchakkar and Bobby Jasoos, reiterates this.

Safe formula
Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Black is easily among Rani Mukerji’s most acclaimed films. But when the film did average business at the box office, the actress went back to the song and dance routine and didn’t look back.

An ardent admirer of Madhuri Dixit, renowned painter MF Husain managed to get her to star in his first film, Gaja Gamini. The film was supposed to be ode to the actress but it turned out to be a disaster. She hasn’t signed any offbeat film since.