When t2 connected with Kanwaljeet Singh over a Zoom call, the veteran actor quipped: “I recognise a Bengali instantly. Meri adhi family toh Bengal se hai na? My wife is Dadamoni (Ashok Kumar)’s granddaughter (Anuradha Patel).” Roaring in laughter when addressed as jamaibabu, Kanwaljeet points out that he has done three Bengali films as well. “Asrita with Mithu Mukherjee was superhit,” he says.

The actor, who had shot to fame as Satbir in the Partition drama Buniyaad on Doordarshan, also reveals plans for its sequel. He has more reasons to be happy as his film Mrs, with Sanya Malhotra in the lead, has registered the biggest opening ever on Zee5 since it started streaming in February. A t2 chat.

Mrs highlights how overworked the woman of the house is.

Yeah, absolutely, we’ve given society a mirror to show that to them.

Recently, you posted a video on Instagram of you serving food to a young lady and she criticising your cooking, just as your character criticises his daughter-in-law in the film. Is that lady someone in your family?

Yeah, she is my son’s friend, and she happens to be the great Kathak dancer Sitara Devi’s granddaughter. And she’s also a dancer herself. I was getting so many brickbats (for this role). So I said: ‘Let’s make a reversal as an apology to all women.’

What kind of reactions are you getting?

Overnight, that video hit five million views. I had never seen such a figure in my life. Now it’s reached nine point something million. So people are relating to it, and trying to forgive me — not forget — for what I did in the film!

When you heard the script, what was your reaction?

I agreed with the film completely, although I was playing an antagonist. I belong to a family where my father was a liberal man. He used to make two cups of tea, keep one for my mother and leave for office. So in my family such situations (as shown in the film) never arose. I had to imagine it and yet empathise with my character. I never hated him while I was doing it. But when I saw the film, it shattered me completely. And instinctively, I went to Sanya and said: “Sorry.” She was quite amused.

The dominant viewership for television is women. Did Mrs attract the same segment?

Of course. The idea is also for the women to show it to the male members of the family, so that this vicious circle, which is shown when we bring in a second bahu (at the end of the film), gets broken. When the mirror is held up to them, the men don’t like it. They won’t even want the women to think what is happening is wrong. Men would prefer things to continue the same way.

Such stories on the big screen end on a predictable note — the oppressed bahu finds a saviour, the in-laws are penitent and the husband gets reformed. But this film has taken a realistic route.

Absolutely. Heroine Jhansi ki Rani thodi hoti hai! What is more important here is what she goes through. Even the bahu herself doesn’t get to see it, because she has also been taught by her mother ki sehna chahiye. There are a few such scenes where she is being asked to accept everything and not react. The men believe what they are doing is right. The reaction shows when the girl is alone. That’s why the climax has her throwing the gutter water on the men and storming out of the house.

The film is directed by a lady (Arati Kadav). If it was directed by a man, I don’t think it would have had so many nuances, and such sensitivity. A male director would have probably taken a different route, I don’t know.

That leaking sink pipe was an apt symbol for the rising problems in the marriage.

That symbolism is there. But what concerned me as a viewer is what the character of Sanya is feeling inside — boiling but not yet enough to react till the end comes. There were so many points in the film where she could have reacted. That didn’t happen. She waited a long time because that is the ethos of women here in India. They take a lot before they can react like this.

On a lighter note, there are lovely visuals of food being cooked in the film.

Yeah, the food on the table had to be visually very attractive (in a house where cooking is such a big virtue). They had a chef to make lunch because we were eating the whole day. After this film, I did four other projects. So I’d forgotten much. The only thing I remembered was eating a lot of nice food, and criticising it! It tasted so good but I had to say things like, “Yeh biryani nahin hai.”

So the food wasn’t undercooked like it is done in ad shoots? Undercooked food looks better.

I know. I have done some food ad shoots. The looks matter more for them. After all, the audience is going to see the food. But here it was nicely garnished, and smelled and tasted better than studio food.

So you actually eat during the shooting?

It doesn’t look realistic otherwise. When you’re at the table, you have to eat it, chew it, and then talk. Then it is realistic. I am not among those jinhone mooh pe kela daal liya because they don’t want to put on weight (by eating the actual food on the table). The food was cooked to my taste. I told them, I don’t like spicy food. So it was cooked with less chilli and masala.

Your Doordarshan show Buniyaad is almost four decades old now.

Television had just started, and I wasn’t getting many films. Sippy Films had started a series called Chhapte Chhapte and I was doing it. The girl opposite me was Sarika, but midway through the pilot, she left for Madras to be with Kamal Haasan. I had already met Anuradha in another film. I suggested that they try her out. So she was brought in. And then, of course, we got married during Buniyaad.

During that time, they didn’t know any other actors who were doing television. So whoever was in Chhapte Chhapte, which was being produced by Sippy Films as well, got called — Alok Nath, Girija Shankar... Manoj Shyam Joshi came from Delhi to give us the narration. I was enthralled by Satbir. But Mr Ramesh Sippy told me: “You will do Roshan Lal.” I said: “Sir, main toh Satbir sun raha tha.” He said: “No, you will not look younger than Dalip Tahil and Mazhar Khan.” There was a bit of time before shooting would start. So I went on a strict diet, surviving almost only on water., After 15-20 days, when I knocked at the door, he saw me and said: “Aaiye Satbirji.” That’s how I got Satbir.

What comes next from you?

Since we’re talking Buniyaad, I met Rameshji and Kiran (Juneja) a couple of weeks ago. They are trying for Buniyaad Season 2. Mazhar Khan (who played Roshan Lal) is no more. I said Roshan Lal must be worldly wise and street smart now. So a dash of Satbir and a dash of Roshan Lal would make him a very interesting entity. A couple of other films are ready. I did a Baba Azmi film called Salman & Daughters (with Naseeruddin Shah). There is one with Huma Qureshi called Single Salma, where I am playing a Lucknowi character speaking a dialect.

Will the new Buniyaad be set in the modern age?

If they have to fit us in, when we come of age, then it will cross the Partition years. Maybe the story will leap over to the 60s or 70s.

Will it come on Doordarshan?

I didn’t ask that. I am interested in the character and the filming. Where they show does not matter to me. Mrs is getting such a good response! People are saying it should have been in the cinemas. How do I know what would have happened then?