If there are two birthday wishes — one professional and one personal — you would want a genie to grant you, what would it be and why?

People of West Bengal have loved and blessed me for 34 years. I wish they continue to love me and have faith in me because it’s their love that has kept me going for so many years. Even today I feel like challenging myself and doing something new and better for Bangla cinema. I would also like to wish for a violence-free state.

What is your fondest memory of being an actor in Tollywood?

There are so many. Difficult to pick one. But yes, there’s a fond memory of Ritu (Rituparno Ghosh) and me. We shared a love-hate relationship as everyone knows. There was a time when we didn’t talk to each other for over a year! I used to live in my Swinhoe Street flat then. One fine morning Ritu came over and started chatting with Arpita (wife). He turned towards me and said: “I’m starting Chokher Bali and as you know you were the first actor who I had chosen for Mahendra, so what are your dates?” And with Chokher Bali a new Prosenjit was born. It was actor Prosenjit’s rebirth. So that moment of Ritu coming over to my place and offering me Chokher Bali is something I remember fondly. Ritu was a strong influence in me becoming another Prosenjit.

What is your worst memory of being an actor in Tollywood?

Oh, don’t ask me about it. I have seen the industry going into the pits; no film was working. I had gone back to theatre where my payment was just Rs 500. I used to play side roles. I couldn’t even make Rs 1,200 a month and I had to run my family.

It’s not a good time for Tollywood but I have seen worse.... Emotions have dried up and that is affecting our creativity.... Only if my industry does well can I afford to drive a Land Rover or a Mercedes-Benz. If the industry doesn’t grow I am nowhere. Films have to work, not any particular actor/actress. We have to develop this mindset.... What we are missing is unity. If we do not unite immediately bad times are around the corner. No single person can save an industry

How do you look back at the 34 years of your career as an actor?

The position I enjoy today is not just an actor’s or a star’s. Thirty years back I never thought I would achieve this position. It’s one thing to be an actor and it’s another thing to be a guiding force for an industry. In the last thirty years, since Duti Pata and Amar Sangi, I have always set a target for myself. I have changed myself and that has taken me forward. Even though Duti Pata ran for 24 weeks and made Prosenjit a huge star, what I didn’t realise was the craze among people. That realisation dawned when I went on stage. I saw over a lakh people urging me to mouth the dialogues of Duti Pata. From that day on my first responsibility was towards the industry. I was hardly 16 then.

Everybody said good things but they also compared me to Biswajit (father) and I challenged myself to come out of that and create my own identity. I chose films where I didn’t have to play a hero. And because I could take challenges then I could do a film like Moner Manush 30 years later.

I have created my own style, sheta daant chepe hotey pare, daant khuley hote pare....! I could break my image with every film. I played a paralysed patient in Paribar, which ran for 50 weeks. Slowly, in my own way, I have updated myself. I am 50-plus, a superstar, but I am still learning so many new things. I still have a Hindi teacher coming home thrice a week to teach me.... Stardom has not affected me.

True or False: Tollywood today is too politicised and dirty for Prosenjit and so given a chance he would shift to Bombay....

See, I really love Bangla cinema. I am proud of this industry. Whatever I am today is because of this industry. Anywhere in India people talk about Bangla cinema my name comes up. Everyone knows I have fought for this industry for so many years. I am proud that I represent Bangla cinema. I am the face of Bangla cinema and that gives me a lot of pleasure.... I am very shy and an introvert and I live in my shell so shifting base isn’t an option really. It doesn’t matter if I get any less by staying here. I started out working in films made with Rs 13 lakh. Now I do films that have a budget of Rs 6 crore. It’s an uncertain industry and I have contributed in every section. Now I am gearing up to direct a very big film, at the national level.

How much has Tollywood changed in all these years, for better and for worse?

Emotions have dried up and that is affecting our creativity. The kind of cinema we are trying to do now has to not only have a package but has to be from the heart. If you ask me Bumbada what’s missing right now, I would say emotional bonding. We don’t have the power that Bollywood has. We don’t have money like them. We can’t do business worth 100 crore. So focusing on these areas is wrong. What we had for the last 30 years is our power to bond with each other, our culture, manners, etiquette. We have a lot of talent. We have the best technicians, we are just missing the power within us. We are getting very materialistic. We all work for material pleasures, of course. I have worked for 30 years and I wanted to have a house, I have a house now. But even at the peak of my career I have lived in a small flat. At that point it really didn’t matter. Bangla industry runs on 70 per cent emotion and 30 per cent materialistic pleasures. We have to realise this.

See, the logic is simple. Only if my industry does well can I afford to drive a Land Rover or a Mercedes-Benz. If the industry doesn’t grow I am nowhere. Films have to work, not any particular actor/actress. We have to develop this mindset. In the last 10 years the industry has improved in terms of business, story-telling, visuals, effects. New directors, good actors have joined. It’s a very positive sign but what we are missing is unity. If we do not unite immediately bad times are around the corner. No single person can save an industry. When I used to do films there were also others like Tapasda (Paul), Chiranjitda and a lot of others. We have to be united.

Why are no Bengali films, commercial or multiplex, making money? Did you foresee this?

It’s not a good time for Tollywood but I have seen worse. We need more heroes, heroines. We need three more Devs and Jeets to make commercial films work. Good production houses also need to grow. We have to do a bit of a homework and start saying ‘eita na amar bhalo holona’.

Yes, nobody does that. While back-stabbing is rampant in Tollywood, you-scratch-my-back-I-scratch-yours is also the norm. Your views?

I have never practiced this. Never in my 30 years have I back-stabbed or scratched someone’s back! An actor cannot be good in every role, it’s okay to fail at times. We have to accept failure. We expect to watch a good film, make a good film and when we fail we do feel bad but if nobody is allowed to say that you are bad then that’s scary. I have to accept that in one particular film I wasn’t good, I tried but I failed. We are living in a scary situation. We are not transparent with ourselves. Self-assessment is very important. Otherwise you will be hurt and develop complex and ego... The kind of criticism I have got from the media for 34 years is unimaginable but that has made me Prosenjit.

At this rate, what’s the future of Bengali films?

We should focus on content for both commercial and multiplex films. We have to create a creative team and assess ourselves. What should we do? And for that we need to brainstorm. We need to open our safety belts and look deeper. All the heroes and the directors need to sit together and introspect what people are not liking and what they are liking. I miss unity among today’s generation. One individual cannot make a difference. I can’t predict the future. I can only come up with a solution by uniting with the rest. We have to talk, debate....

Kushali Nag

What is your b’day message for Prosenjit? Tell t2@abp.in