When an actor prepares, he doesn't think of the outcome. When Anupam Kher took on the role of a Kashmiri Muslim in Dhokha, people of his clan of Kashmiri Brahmins objected strongly. "Yes, I'm a Kashmiri Pandit in real life. But in Dhokha, I play a Kashmiri Muslim who's a victim of the establishment. It's a role that required me to look at the tragedy of fundamentalism and extremism from the other side. And I don't mind if it offends some people. I'm an actor who is hungry for experience. I'm ready to play anything from a killer to a comedian to a corpse (Buddha Mar Gaya)."
In fact, this Friday Anupam was also seen in Ashok Kumar's role from the 1973 film Victoria 203. "And look at the contrast in the two parts on the same Friday. Dhokha is a stark serious look at extremism. I play the traumatized father of a woman accused of being a human bomb. In Victoria 203, I'm this aging guy with a roving eye, an incorrigible skirt chaser. Some people might object to an actor of my stature playing such a lech, just as some people objected to a Kashmiri Brahmin playing a Muslim. But acting gives me the freedom to explore avenues galore. I can move from one extreme to another. I was the victimized father in Mahesh Bhatt's Saraansh. I'm a victimized father in Dhokha today."
About his skirt chaser's role Victoria 203, Anupam says, "I really enjoyed that role. Om Puri and I had great fun playing the roles originally done by Ashok Kumar and Pran. But I didn't watch the original. I wanted to interpret it in my own way. But I believe we've retained the innocence of the two small-towners from the original."
Anupam also put in a guest appearance in last week's Heyy Babby. "In Heyy Babyy, I was playing the character of Shah Rukh's dad from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge. It was a spoofy homage to one of the biggest hits of Indian cinema. "
Courtesy: IndiaFM
