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'I honestly feel we aren’t making quality movies'

On screen, bad is too mild a term for him. What he is is evil. Off screen, he is a writer, painter, carver, trekker and, above all, a gentleman.

A paradox? May be. An enigma? Definitely. That’s Danny Denzongpa for you.

His latest project is the much-awaited Boney Kapoor movie, Pukar, where he is playing the man everyone loves to hate.

Aparajita Saha met up with the reticent and unassuming actor at Andheri. He spoke to her at length about his passions, his projects and his future.

What is it about Pukar that made you accept the film?

Pukar is a very good blend of commerce and art. It is a commercial movie, but it isn't the typical run-of-the-mill story. It is quite believable and, even though there are songs, they don't seem out of context. The characters are plausible and well-etched and Boney (Kapoor, the producer) has spared no effort in seeing to it that the movie had the best -- be it in the form of technicians, cinematographers, art directors, sound recordists, locations, as well as the director, Rajkumar Santoshi, who I think is one of the best today. Boney wants to make the biggest film in India and I think, with Pukar, he has hit bull's eye!

You are playing the role of Abrush in Pukar -- how bad is he?

In my opinion he isn't bad at all! I believe that every person walks a very thin line between the good and the dark side and he can fall either way, depending on various factors. When I look at a character, what interests me is the greyness in them.

I think, from Abrush's point of view, all those guys who are singing songs and doing good things are the villains. As far as he is concerned, the entire Indian nation is his enemy and they are the people who are doing wrong. He wants to liberate Kashmir and he is so focused that he is like a man possessed, and this is where he derives his happiness from.

He is intelligent, well-read and a very well-trained commando. In fact, I like him! But the people in this country will love to hate him and that will be my moment of triumph!

This is your fourth movie with Rajkumar Santoshi. You seem to have a high regard for him.

Yes, my first film with him was Barsaat, in which he gave me a character which was quite different.

Then we did Ghatak, where I played a character who seemed quite outlandish. But it gave Raj a point with which was to bring children into the theatres. I enjoyed that character tremendously because it was very strong!

Then we did China-Gate which was another wonderful experience. For that movie, we'd set up the sets in Karnataka and he spent more money than he should have because there were no saleable stars in that movie. There were very good actors, but no commercial stars as such.

And now, we have worked together in Pukar.

I don't generally do many films with one particular director, though I did do about four-five films with Mukul Anand when he was alive. But Raj is one of my favourites. There are certain kind of people you click with and share a certain type of chemistry with. It's like when, as an actor, you're listening to a script and you want to say something and the director understands what you mean without you even saying anything -- that's the kind of rapport I share with Raj.

He is a very good film-maker who is not after money; he doesn't keep making the same kind of movies with the same kind of songs to attract the masses. With every movie he makes, he tries out a different subject. His main motivation is that he wants to make good films and not many people think that way.

He is very comfortable with the actors because he is not afraid of sharing whatever he is thinking and feeling. Very few people trust their actors and Raj is one such person. Technically, he is very sound and knows his job very well. He is a very good actor as well and can show an actor what he wants. Apart from this, he is a very fair and wonderful person.

Even in Pukar, Raj has chosen a story that has a very different backdrop. Even the love story that is set against it has a mature feel. People are behaving the way they are supposed to, within the skin of the characters they are playing.

Over the last few years, you have started dabbling with television. What differences do you find between cinema and television? What about theatre?

The television medium works at a very fast pace and it's very difficult to keep up with it. Every week there is a release so you have to keep shooting through the week. I did a serial called Ajnabi, which was a big hit. We did almost 225 episodes, which was very hectic, so I didn’t enjoy it that much.

I also find that the quality of television in India is not really up to the mark, It’s going to take a while before there is an improvement in quality as well as in the magnitude of the budgets. I’m waiting for such a time. Until then, may be, I’ll work in some short stories or if someone wants me to go trekking to the mountains and talk about it, I will!

I’m used to working in a very leisurely way where I take on few films so I can take time out for the things that I’m passionate about like trekking, painting, scuba diving and carving. On top of that, I now have a family with a son and daughter with whom I have to spend time.

Theatre is something I did in school and college, and that too not very seriously. I don’t think theatre has picked up in India and doesn’t have as wide an audience as cinema. Cinema is the leading medium right now and since I’m occupied with it, theatre hasn’t really been a focus. There have been inquiries and offers, but none of them have been very interesting.

Again, it comes down to the same issue of quality not being up to the mark and commercialisation being the focus, so there isn’t any incentive for someone who wants to do good work in that medium.

Continued...