Your film Inspector Notty K came out in January. And Sultan: The Saviour releases today. Are you stepping up your film releases?

I have always aspired to have three-four films in a year. This time also that is the target. If it goes to five also I wouldn’t mind (smiles). 

Tell us about your new look for Sultan...

Now, my hair has grown a little bigger. But yeah, you get a feel of it. For Sultan, I cut my hair short and grew a beard. I got some really positive feedback. The industry people also felt that the look is nice. There are a lot of kids at home and they are saying, ‘Gunda lagchhe’ (laughs). 

So the beard will stay for a while?

Until I start the next one and decide what look I will go with.

Are you working out now?

Yeah, I am working out at home. I am mostly doing three days of yoga and three days of weight training. I have a trainer and a yoga teacher.  I feel good. If I  don’t have a shoot, I do yoga and training around 10am. And if there is a hectic schedule, I plan the workout schedule as per the shoot.  

Do you get tense before a release?

There is a huge pressure always. See, I started with Saathi which was a blockbuster. It reached out to a wide audience. I started big and I understood that people have huge expectations from me. Every time. For me, the pressure is in meeting people’s expectations. And honestly, I have too much expectation from myself. Like everyone, I am also trying to do my best. I always try to get better. The aspiration is always high. 

You went live on Facebook during the shoot of Sultan, which was a new thing for you…

My team has been pushing me constantly to be more active on social media… to maintain my presence. Fans also want it. I want to connect with a wider audience, that’s the aspiration… be it through cinema, Facebook or Twitter. 

Has your daughter Navanya seen you going live on Facebook?

She is only into schoolbooks, not Facebook (smiles). She has seen the trailers and songs of Sultan… and liked it. 

She likes you best in which genre — action, drama or comedy?

Anything that is eventful. She connects with music and likes the upbeat songs.

How do you spend time with her when you are not shooting?

We go for movies and dinners. We watched Raazi, and liked it.  

You got seven stitches during the shoot of Sultan…

It was my mistake. We were doing rehearsals for a scene where I had to fall on the wooden floor of a barge. My hands were tied to the back and a mask was placed on my head. I was supposed to fall on my side or chest. It was a regular fall. But I missed and I fell on my chin and suffered a nasty cut. There was a lot of blood. I was rushed to the hospital. After hitting the floor, I was actually thinking of rehearsing the fall once again. Once the blood came out… you can imagine… I am an actor. And I was constantly thinking how do I get back to work. I have hurt myself many times while doing stunts, and I have immediately got back to the shoot. Because of the stitches I could not get back to work immediately this time. I was off for seven days. I did my rehearsals at home, went back and did the scene again. In the past I have jumped from the second floor of a building and hurt my back. There were safety bags but they were not good enough. I have suffered many injuries during shoots. 

One of your Sultan looks reminds us of your look in Saathi…

Yeah, that’s true… and if I keep my normal hair and don’t do much of styling that’s how I look. My character is the guy-next-door who comes to town to fulfill his sister’s aspiration and dreams. He drives a taxi... he has to be a casual normal guy. I just kept it simple. 

Do your fans want to see you more as an action hero?

Yeah, I hear that. They feel action goes with me. Personally, I would like to do all kinds of good films. In Sultan, there are layers to my character. He is a good guy, a bad guy, and a guy who only works for money. In that layer, he doesn’t know anything beyond money. Sultan is primarily an action film but it is a good story with strong emotions, love, thrill, suspense, comedy.

How is the action different from your previous films?

The action is raw, more hand to hand combat. Which is why the designing was important for this. It’s less on gimmicks. The action scenes are really relevant. 

How did you feel driving a cab around town?

We are so used to driving cars with power steering. The taxi was definitely not as smooth (laughs). After the first couple of drives, I requested the production team to give me something better! Didn’t happen! We had to keep the original one for continuity! We drove all over the city.    

Tell us about the two actresses — Bangladeshi actress Bidya Sinha Saha Mim and Priyanka Sarkar...

Mim is talented and wants to do good work. I enjoyed working with her.  And Priyanka has done a wonderful job.  She herself says that after Chirodini Tumi Je Amar this is her best work. Also, this is my third film with director Raja (Chanda). I feel this is his best.  

When are you releasing the film in Bangladesh?

We really wanted to release it today, simultaneously. Despite all efforts, it didn’t happen. As of now, the film is set to release in Bangladesh on June 29.  

You went to Tirupati before the release...

It’s like answering to a call. The call had come and that’s why I went. I find happiness and joy, power and strength. For me, work is a part of life. Of course joy should be in life, not only in work.