Nana Patekar with Rekha at Ramoji Rao Film City. Pictures by Aranya Sen

The obsessive husband in Agnisakshi, the schizophrenic don in Parinda, the mute sensitive father in Khamoshi, the idealistic armyman in Prahaar, the trigger-happy cop in Ab Tak Chhappan or the romantic Barishwala in Thodi Si Roomani Ho Jaye? Which of these comes closest to the real Nana Patekar? The hot-headed, brash one, perhaps. At least that?s what his public image is, and Nana hasn?t cared to dispel the notion.

The 56-year-old admits he does have a volatile temper. He yells at everyone at sight when he is in a foul mood, explodes into expletives and then calms down within seconds. ?Mere saath jhagra hai sabka, par dushmani nahin (I fight with everyone, but there is no enmity),? is how he prefers to put it.

Off the sets of Goutam Ghose?s Yatra in Hyderabad, Nana comes across as a candid man with a passion for adda.

The role of a writer and his relationship with a tawaif (Rekha) in Yatra has got him all excited. ?I get to play my own age here. Besides, this character is weird. It?s very understated. Sometimes you have to be just there and do nothing. Whichever roles I have done till now were very verbose,? he says after a shoot at Ramoji Rao Film City, before adding with a smile, ?Except Khamoshi.?

The actor with a reputation of being ?difficult? on the sets, has a slightly different take on the subject: ?I think you must have the capacity to surrender to the director, or have as much knowledge of the script as the director and only then can you say something. I do suggest certain things to the director but I will be the last person to insist, because by doing that I think you are hampering the director?s vision.?

It?s only when the director?s vision blends with the screen character that memorable movie moments are born. And so, his own Prahaar remains special. ?Sometimes, the role has been great but the process of shooting was so bad that I don?t want to remember it at all? But I like Prahaar??

?I had a great experience of spending two-and-a-half years with the Indian Army. I had got special permission from the central government. I believe in this approach to life ? that tomorrow you are going to die,? says Nana, stroking the table almost like Anna Seth in Parinda. Point that out to him, and he laughs out loud.

And there?s certainly more to him than meets the eye at first glance. Catch him sketching, not doodling, on a pad during the chat and he rambles, ?I was a commercial artist and worked with an advertising agency. I passed out of JJ School of Arts in 1970? One morning, I realised that I wanted to be an actor, but I loved theatre and was reluctant to join films initially.?

The start in tinsel town was not so good ? Nana forayed into films with Muzzafar Ali?s Gaman in 1978, an arty project for which he is ?yet to be paid Rs 3,000 out of the total Rs 5,000!? He did Dulal Guha?s Sagar Sangame because he needed the money and followed it up with Tiranga for much the same reason.

One of Nana?s biggest regrets is that none of the ?art film-makers? ever cast him in their films. ?I used to wish that Naseer (Naseeruddin Shah) and Om Puri should die, so that I would get their roles? But acting is my hobby, it?s Naseer?s passion. He is a far better actor than me,? admits Nana, whose Apaharan releases on Friday, followed by Bluffmaster and Taxi No. 9211. Nana turns director in June. And yes, he has kept a role for himself in his film.

Whatever else, you can?t accuse Nana of not being grounded. A favourite pastime is travelling in Mumbai?s autorickshaws. ?That way you can listen to their stories. That?s the best way. People can touch you, you can touch them? But when the camera is on, I become an actor. I become ruthless,? he trails off.