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Naseeruddin
Shah, who gets a "bigger high" from direction than acting,
confesses his adoration for Hema Malini with whom he is paired after a
long gap.
"She’s still gorgeous, isn’t she? Iadore her. I
think we’ll make a good couple," Naseer said. He is also keen
to work with Shabana Azmi again. "The right part hasn’t come
along recently. She accuses me of not wanting to work with her. I don’t
want to do crap with her. But it’ll happen again. "I somehow
have the feeling that all these years when we haven’t worked
together has done our pair a whole lot of good," says the
actor-director. As to which is better — acting or directing — he
says: "Acting in movies is the most miserable job in the world.
Sometimes you’ve two minutes of work after waiting on the set the
whole day. Direction gives me a much bigger high. It feels like my
whole career has been a preparation for this." Excerpts from an
interview: Why direction so late in your life? For the
simple reason that it didn’t seem right earlier on. I remember
myself as a typical kid with dreams of directing a film starring
myself. I had some ideas at 19, which I’d still like to direct. But
Inever wanted to become a film-maker earlier. I only wanted to act. I
had no statements to make, no burning messages that I wanted to
deliver to the world. I wanted direction to happen organically. That’s
why Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota took so long. Is direction as
stimulating as acting? It’s much more stimulating than acting.
Acting in movies is the most miserable job in the world. Sometimes you’ve
two minutes of work after waiting on the sets the whole day. I enjoyed
it while it lasted. But now I want to move on. Are you bored
with acting because you aren’t getting the right kind of roles? No.
I’ve enjoyed Monsoon Wedding Parzania, Valley of Flowers, even the
small parts in Mixed Doubles and Omkara. Direction gives me a much
bigger high. It feels like my whole career has been a preparation for
this. Mind you, I still enjoy acting in theatre immensely. Frankly, I
wouldn’t act in a film unless it really excites me. I’m trying to
do small parts in films by friends. Did you enjoy playing God in
Banaras—A Mystic Love Story? Banaras was a little
beyond me, I’ve to admit. There’re many films that I didn’t
understand while they were being made. But on seeing them finally, I
did. I didn’t understand Banaras even after I saw the end
product. May be I’m not mature enough to understand it. I
loved your goofy villainy in Krrish I had a ball doing it.
To begin with, the part didn’t excite me. But Rakesh Roshan was keen
on me. You can’t argue with success. Is it a sorrow that you don’t command the same
commercial stature as Amitabh Bachchan? I have never aspired to
occupy the position that he does. It’s very lonely up there. And I’m
sure he has a lot of problems. Becoming a huge star didn’t mean the
world to me. I’ve been doing the kind of work that I want to do. I
don’t deny that I wanted to be known to the world and that I wanted
to lead a cushy life. But I’ve been ambitious only about finding the
right kind of work. For example, at the moment I derive immense
pleasure from teaching acting at Subhash Ghai’s Whistling Woods
institute. What about Shabana? She’s dying to work with you
again. The right part hasn’t come along recently. She accuses
me of not wanting to work with her. Why should I do that? Why should I
do a film just because she’s in it, or not do a film that doesn’t
have her? I don’t want to do crap with her. But it’ll happen
again. I somehow have the feeling that all these years when we haven’t
worked together has done our pair a whole lot of good. Are your
children interested in acting? My daughter Heeba is an actress.
My son Imaad played a small part in Yun Hota To Kya Hota. He
was hanging around home doing nothing. That’s how he got into the
film. He’s interested in a lot of things, including music and
movies. I’ll support my children in whatever they want to do. My
father didn’t want me to be an actor. And there wasn’t a damn
thing he could do about it.— IANS
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