Aditya shoots a fight sequence at Rajarhat City Centre. Pictures by Anindya Shankar Ray

Aditya Pancholi is in town shooting for Rajib’s Idiot. On the first day of his shoot at Rajarhat City Centre, the actor chatted with t2.

Why did you say yes to Idiot?

Because the subject is good. My character Ranobijoy is very powerful. Ashok Dhanukaji (producer of Idiot) is prominent in the industry. I have never done any other regional language film.... It’s nice shooting in Calcutta. I have some very good friends here and I love Bengali food.... We actors are very eccentric, you know, sometimes we reject a very good offer and sometimes we just say yes. The other reason why I said yes is because I like the director (Rajib). With his long hair, he looks a cool dude!

Do you keep track of Tollywood?

No. I don’t even keep track of Bollywood. But I have seen Satyajit Ray films and I know of Uttam Kumarsaab and Rituparno Ghosh. My strongest Bengali connection is Mithun Chakraborty. I have done around 20 films with him.

What do you play in Idiot?

I play the heroine’s (Shrabanti) brother who’s a very rich guy. Very hot-tempered, but the character has a lot of humour in him. He is neither bad nor good. He is funny, loves his sister, gets angry very fast, cools down very fast. So, lots of shades.

What do you think the audience likes to see you as?

I think the audience likes to see me getting angry (laughs)... and fighting. They also like to see me as an emotional guy. Characters that are for the masses. I’m basically a front-bencher’s actor! I may look very suave but people like to see me as the bad guy. They loved me in Maha-Sangram, Saathi, Aatish, Yes Boss, Hameshaa, Yaad Rakhegi Duniya, Dum Maaro Dum… See, I believe that if you have a Dhaba you must sell dal-roti, not pasta and pizza. Every filmmaker and actor caters to a different kind of audience. I cater to a very commercial audience.

Despite the looks and the height, you never became a mainstream hero...

Mainstream heroes only run around trees, sing songs, woo girls and bash up villains. It’s a routine thing. Not very real; nobody is so good. I find grey characters closer to life. You should do what you do good. Like a gun looks very good in Amitabh Bachchan’s hands. I don’t think a rose would suit his hands, a rose would suit the hands of Rajesh Khanna. So every actor knows what their audience wants from them. Experiments don’t work always.

What suits your hand?

I think a gun (laughs out loud)!

Any regrets about the way your career has gone?

No regrets. But I wish I had proper guidance. I had no filmi background, I was only 18 when I started acting. I got a lot of money, fame and girls… I mean girls would flock for autographs! I never wanted to be an actor, I wanted to join the Navy. And most importantly I didn’t know how to manage my image. Today people are more conscious of their image than their performance. I wasn’t. I did whatever came my way. But no regrets. In every actor’s life there are at least 10 good movies and I have got five.

Your son Suraj is assisting filmmakers. Do you give him tips?

He assisted Sanjay Leela Bhansali in Guzaarish. Now he is assisting Kabir Khan in Ek Tha Tiger. He is just 20. I don’t want to guide him, you know, because my guidance won’t be right (laughs). My wife (Zarina Wahab) is a better guide. The best part of Suraj is that he looks like me but he’s got his mother’s nature, which is great because with my kind of nature you can’t go anywhere! I am very hot-tempered, not diplomatic. I just tell him what not to do (laughs)! And my wife tells him what to do.

Kushali Nag

What do you like about Aditya Pancholi? Tellt2@abp.in