Victor Banerjee in Bow Barracks Forever, and (below) in Ho Sakta Hai

From David Lean?s Dr Aziz to Satyajit Ray?s Nikhilesh, from the grand old man of Bengali potboilers to a close friend of the Deol family, VICTOR BANERJEE is still going strong. The versatile actor, a reluctant resident of Calcutta, discusses his new-found role in Bollywood and his tenuous links with Tollywood, during a brief stopover in town.

You have a bit role in Home Delivery but have been praised for being spontaneous and natural. As a doting dad in a kurta, did you almost get to play yourself?

There is no such thing as ?playing yourself?. If there were, it would be the most difficult thing to do. Home Delivery was an SOS from Sujoy (Ghosh) the director, because the actor he had in mind couldn?t give him the dates he wanted. I had met Sujoy during the making of My Brother Nikhil. I am thrilled the critics liked my brief appearance but that has a lot to do with the way the part was conceived by the director.

We gather that your role in Anil Sharma?s Apne is kind of a binding force among the other major characters?

Apne, believe it or not, is fallout from My Brother Nikhil. Anil Sharma the director was shown the film by the scriptwriter Neeraj Pathak and they called me on Bijoya Dashami day to seal the deal. Very briefly, I play a close friend of the ?Deol? family and am there to share good times and bad, support them, help them and work with them and push and encourage them to accomplish goals they set for themselves.

After your work in Jogger?s Park, Bhoot and My Brother Nikhil, the interest of Mumbai film-makers and producers in you has rekindled. What is your response to this leg of your film career?

If I can deliver the goods in Apne, it shall open doors that have for quite some time remained not quite shut but, what I would call left ajar, with a need to find the tool to shove it open with. Apne with a little effort and luck may do the job.

What kind of roles are you being offered and which directors would you want to work with?

Who do I want to work with? Ha. Every director I wish to work with has a mind of his or her own and so there is no point in my dreaming that they will fall in line to use me in a film. The joy in waiting for them is that they inevitably give it a great deal of thought before casting me and that means I never have to reject a role on the grounds that it has insufficient meat or substance in it.

Two of your films, Amavas and Ho Sakta Hai, have been awaiting release for a long time. Can you tell us what has happened to the projects?

Both these films ran into technical hitches that took time to reconcile and thus missed their scheduled release dates. Once the theatres are free after the blockbuster releases slated for December and January, I expect both the films to be in the cinemas soon thereafter.

Anjan Dutt?s Bow Barracks Forever is yet another film which is long awaited. What is your role in the film and why it is special to you?

I shall remain ever grateful to Anjan Dutt for casting me in Bow Barracks. For viewers in Bengal who liked me as Nikhilesh in Satyajit Ray?s Ghare Bhaire, my role as Peter The Cheater will present an unbelievable contrast that I hope they will enjoy and accept.

You haven?t done a Bengali film in a long time. Have you severed links with the Bengali film industry, or more specifically with Bengali commercial films? If you do one now, what kind of film would you pick?

Bengal has settled on an angry old man in Mithun Chakraborty, and a gentle and vulnerable man in Ranjit Mullick. The former has a huge market in Bengal and Orissa and the latter has a massive following in the cities and villages. These facts render me redundant until some director actually visualises me in a role. With regard to preferences, I have none. An actor is grateful for any work he gets.