I grabbed every assignment, says Anupam Kher

Veteran actor Anupam Kher has reached yet another milestone. This time, he has completed his 500th film in his 30-year old career. In a freewheeling chat, he talks about his journey, his struggles, and Bollywood. He also gets candid about his upcoming film, Mumbai Hotel, which is based on the infamous 26/11-terror attack in Mumbai.

500 films is a staggering number And I am proud of every one of them: good, bad, indifferent they are all my films. You may criticise me for doing Kya Kool Hain Hum, but every experience has enriched my life. Every film has mattered to me because I know what a workless existence means to an actor.

Your 500th film is a Hollywood film Yes, it is a film called Big Sick. I got to work with phenomenal talent like Ray Romano (of Everybody Loves Raymond fame), Holly Hunter and Zoe Kazan (Elia Kazan’s grand daughter). It was an interesting experience. My 501st film, Mumbai Hotel, is one of the most important films in my career. It is about the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai.

Tell us about it The kind of research the makers have done gives the film a unique insight into what really happened at the Taj Mahal Hotel in Mumbai during the terror attack. It’s sad, but terror attacks are all about statistics that we read in the newspapers. They happen so frequently that we have stopped reacting to them on a humane level. This film changes that sense of detachment, which we’ve developed about terror attacks. Mumbai Hotel is about what happened to the people inside the Taj that evening.

So, are all the characters real Some are real. Some are based on real-life characters. I play a character inspired by the Taj chef Hemant Oberoi.

Do you plan to meet him I haven’t met him. I intend to interpret the character in my own way. Some of the biggest talents from Hollywood is involved with the project. In fact, I call it my first film after the interval in my career.

You went through your period of struggle... When I came to Mumbai from Shimla, I had no work, no home, no goals, no dignity, and no one to call my own. I lived on the streets, and faced humiliation. I had no choice but to keep trying. Because, the only other alternative was to go back home and do what There was nothing I could do except act. So, when I finally got work I grabbed everything that came my way.

Everything Yes. I didn’t want to let go of a single opportunity. You have to understand I had gone through hell. I was a hungry man — there was no difference between biryani and khichdi. I am reminded of what the great Manmohan Desai once said to me during my days of struggle when I met him.

What did he say He advised me to keep my ‘date diary’ (recording the work schedules for various films) full. As long as your date diary is full, you will be respected and valued in the film industry, so, keep working. Hence, I kept doing everything that came my way. In recent years, my work speaks for me. It’s been thirty years since I began my journey in Bollywood. Yet, the hunger to excel remains.

Wouldn’t doing Umar Pachpan Ki Dil Bachpan Ka and Mast Kalandar at this stage look odd Wisdom comes with experience. I just got tired of doing films because of insecurity. I no longer have any reason to feel insecure. However let me reiterate, I’ve enjoyed shooting for my bad films.

Do you feel Indian cinema needs to mature when compared with its American counterpart Come on, be fair. Our cinema is only 70-years-old. In these seven decades we’ve made phenomenal headway. Let’s not make Hollywood our benchmark. We have Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, Adoor Gopalkrishnan, Hrishikesh Mukherjee and RajKumar Hirani.

Tell me about your new television show Bharatvarsh is about the greatness of our country, about the people who made a difference to the shape of modern India. I am learning about the rich heritage of our country. Come to think of it, I’ve been learning on the job all through my career.

Do we get to see you in active politics Definitely not in the next five to six years.

Which of your 500 films do you consider to be milestones What you may consider to be milestones may not be what I consider to be milestones. But if you are asking about my milestones, it has to be Saaraansh, Daddy, Dil Hai Ki Manta Nahin, A Wednesday, Special 26, Baby, Hum Aapke Hain Koun, Ram Lakhan, Karma, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Maara, Bend It Like Beckham, Wake Up Sid and Silver Lining Playbook. And also Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution and Woody Allen’s You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger, although I had just a few scenes in these two. When I look back I feel, ‘not bad, Anupam’.