Reza Noorani (BOMBAY TIMES; May 12, 2018)

Vinay Pathak loves Mumbai, and there are no two ways about it. Even a 10-year-stint in New York doesn’t compare to the life that he has made for himself here. The actor, who got to know Mumbai through Bollywood films says, “I knew the difference between Dadar Chowpatty and Juhu Chowpatty even before I came to Mumbai.” As a Mumbaikar, Vinay has seen several shades of the city including a visit to a dance bar. In his latest film, Khajoor Pe Atke, where he plays a quintessential penny-pinching, middle-class guy, the actor talks about where he drew inspiration for his role. He also shares his experiences of visiting Pakistan to promote Indian cinema.

Khajoor Pe Atke is about a dysfunctional family. Were there any characters in your own family that you drew from?
The only dysfunction that I remember from my childhood was that I never lived with my family. My father was a Deputy Superintendent of police and a controversial figure. He was honest and diligent, which was a problem, because an honest police officer in Bihar is a casualty. He sent me to a boarding school at a very young age so I could get proper education. I would see my family once a year during vacations, but I have a huge extended family. My father was the oldest of eight brothers and five sisters. My mother was the oldest among three sisters and four brothers. You can imagine how many aunts, uncles and cousins I have. Today, if I bump into my first cousin, I would not even recognise him because there are so many and they’re still being born as we speak! Whenever I am in an ensemble film with a family, I don’t have to look outside for a reference. I have all the characters in my life already.

In the film, your character comes to Mumbai along with his family and is wowed by the city. Do you recall any similar experiences from the time when you freshly relocated to the city?
I came to Mumbai for the first time after living for 10 years in New York, but my wow factor never dipped because I grew up on Hindi cinema. Even though I lived in Ranchi, Allahabad and Dhanbad, I knew every nook and corner of the city and I could name every film, song or sequence that was shot here. Mujhe yahan ki galiyaan jaani pehchani lagti thi. Footpath jaane pehchane lagtey the. I knew the difference between Juhu Chowpatty and Dadar Chowpatty even before coming to the city! I knew about Madh Island from scenes where the narcotics shipments were shown docking at the Madh jetty! Honestly, I am still fascinated when I see a shoot happening on the street. I always stop to see what it’s about. Even though I am more often on the other side of the camera, my fascination of watching a shoot has not waned. Mumbai has adopted me so warmly. My children were born here. So, for me, it is my city. I am a Mumbaikar. I think Mumbaikars are the most wonderful bunch of people in the whole world. I used to think that New York is cool. But I now know that Mumbai is the coolest.

The people of Mumbai transcend the divisions of caste, creed, colour and ethnicity or even nationality. I feel very fortunate that I found my home here.

In an earlier interview, you mentioned that there wasn’t a lot of interesting work for you in Bollywood.
I was asked why I was not seen more often on screen. To which I replied that I read scripts and take up only those which excite me the most. It’s not that I look down upon any script, but I can do only one movie at a time and I like to work that way. I have never said that I wanted to work in art cinema or in mainstream movies. For me, a wonderful script transcends boundaries of art, parallel or commercial cinema. For example, how would you categorise Bheja Fry? It made a huge amount of money for its producer and people call it a commercially successful film. It was made in 54 lakhs and it made over 25 crores; a ratio that’s unheard of. But I have always been associated with films like that, be it Khosla Ka Ghosla, Dasvidaniya, Chalo Dilli or Gour Hari Daastan. These are the films that I am proud of. But I got those films after reading 50 scripts. I said no to other films, not because they were bad, but just that I cannot do all of them. For some, I felt I wasn’t qualified enough and didn’t have the talent. I believe the most wonderful and essential thing you can do as an artiste is to learn about your limitations. I think I would look ridiculous doing a song and dance film. I have a great regard for those who can pull it off with panache though.

A few characters in Khajoor Pe Atke visit a dance bar in Mumbai. Have you ever visited one during your time in the city?
When I came to Mumbai, the dance bars were still around. My friends told me, ‘We will show you something in Mumbai that you won’t find anywhere else in the world’. I said, ‘What are you talking about, man? I’m from New York and nothing can surprise me’. So, I visited a dance bar on a friend’s birthday in South Mumbai and I was truly astonished. It was all so civil inside, including the people and dancers. Some of the girls were actually very good dancers. Nobody was crossing anyone else’s boundaries. I realised then, that Mumbai is a place where you are respected for your work. Nobody looks down upon you. My regard for those dancers never dipped. I mean, you are in a city that hosts the film industry. If you talk about other cities, like New York or LA, there are strip clubs where women are butt-naked. But here, we didn’t need to do that. The song and dance of seduction doesn’t have to be crude or lewd. They danced so well that some of them were celebrities in their own right.

You recently went to Pakistan for a film festival. Tell us about your experience there.
It was a great experience. I have said this before and I will say it again, our friend Subhash Kapoor (filmmaker) was also there, and he said a wonderful thing at one of the functions. He said, ‘Pakistan is the only country in the world where you get treated specially because you are an Indian.’ Nowhere do you get special treatment because you are an Indian. There is something in the warped history that we share. I think that people’s love for each other is still prevalent. I did not feel like I was in a foreign country when I went there for the first time. Karachi is like Mumbai and Lahore like Delhi. The Lahoris speak in Punjabi very much like people in Delhi or Chandigarh. So, I did not feel alienated at all. Plus, cinema is a bridge. I saw huge hoardings of Kapil Sharma’s show in Lahore and I wondered if I was in Mumbai.

With his movie Island City up for release, actor Vinay Pathak tells us about his process of selecting a role
Deepali Singh (DNA; September 2, 2016)


How did Island City happen? What appealed to you about the script?
The movie happened by fluke. I met Ruchika Oberoi, the director and writer of the film at Film Bazaar at IFFI in Goa, and we got talking about this script that she had written for Screenwriter’s Lab. I pestered her to let me read the script and when I did, I flipped! It was such a crisp, intricately-woven satire, yet, so simple and beautiful. I called her right away and told her I’m on. Then NFDC came on board and the project got underway. It’s a fantastic script with a high entertainment quotient. The audience is going to experience all the navrasas when they watch this movie. It will open a pandora’s box in their head.

The title obviously refers to Mumbai. Do you think there has been a Mumbai overdose in our movies?
All his life, Woody Allen did nothing but make movies on New York. The city has always been one of the strongest characters in his movies and most of them are classics. Overdose? Mumbai city? No way!

How do you choose a movie? Is your role important or the script?
The script has to work. There are so many scripts I have said no to where I’m the protagonist. For me, the story is very important, followed by how it’s written in the screenplay format and who’s the director. When you speak to somebody, you gauge their sensibilities. Island City is Ruchika’s first film, but what a brave director she is! Her core team is full of cinema enthusiasts and within a week, I realised these people mean business. It was such a joy to be a part of a pure, cinematic experience.

In Ketan Mehta’s film Toba Tek Singh, you play the writer Sadat Hasan Manto’s role. Tell us a bit about the movie.
I have been a Manto fan all my life and Ketan has done a brilliant job with the story. He has created Manto as a character, as the supervisor of the mental asylum who comes in contact with all the inmates. Pankaj Kapur is in the main role and I also got the opportunity to work with some really talented actors. We shot in a village called Bassi Pathana, which is a few hours away from Chandigarh, while Toba Tek Singh is a village near Lahore.

There is a tendency to box people in categories and Hindi cinema has tried to put you in the ‘playing-the-fool’ box. But we have seen your serious side in movies such as Dasvidaniya and Gour Hari Dastaan. Is there a deliberate attempt to break out of the mould?
Nothing like that. The only deliberate move is to not repeat myself. People keep bringing me Bheja Fry kind of films. They want me to play the protagonist, shoot in one bungalow for 20 days in a limited budget and expect the film to be a success, just like Bheja Fry. But my question is, where is the story or the characterisation? I don’t want to get bored of my job. I love my work with utmost respect, passion and stubbornness. Cinema is in my veins, in the way I look at people and the way I look at life. And if I claim to love it so much, I can’t do work that sucks the joy out of it.