The actor, who turns 60 today, talks about his long journey in the industry
HERE ONLY TO ACT: Kamal Haasan says that he stopped working for money or fame around 30 years back. (Photo: Mugil Chandran)
Hyderabad: Kamal Haasan turns 60 on November 7, and for 50 of those years, he has been in front of the camera. In a chat, the superstar talks about his family, friendship with Rajinikanth and of course, his passion, acting.
How do you feel about your life right now?
Much, much more comfortable. It’s like I’ve taken a vapour inhalation. I can breathe easy. I feel rejuvenated. I feel relaxed I now have a smile on my face and it’s showing in my films.
You’re now 60. Out of these a good 50 years in front of the camera. Aren’t you exhausted?
The day I start looking at acting as work I would be. Working for money or fame saps you. I stopped doing that 30 years back.
Are you enthused by Hindi cinema?
Yes, some of it. I am very happy Aamir Khan is now attempting films that should’ve been done 10 years ago in Hindi. People attribute this new cinema to the entry of corporate houses in Hindi cinema. But where were these corporate houses when Hrishi Da (Hrishikesh Mukherjee) made his films, and Gulzar Bhai made Achanak? Brilliant films are possible in every corner of India.
Your elder daughter Shruti Haasan has made a career in both Tamil and Hindi…
I’m proud of her because she isn’t doing a product of our home banner Rajkamal Films. The only thing Rajkamal did for her was to give her a chance to do the background score in Unnaipol Oruvan. It
wouldn’t matter to me if she failed as a movie actress. But right now it looks like a winning streak.
Don’t you want to act in a film with her?
Shruti has been telling me that we should. But I don’t want her to do it just for the heck of it. She is a star now. I want her to act in one of our home productions for the glory of our banner. By the way, for the Tamil version of Dasavthaaram she was my coach for my American accent. She had just returned from the US and was the perfect medium to help her father’s Madrasi accent to be transformed into a Yankee accent. She was a bully. She made me do many retakes. And after the dubbing she wanted me to correct some more of my accent. Everyone thought that was taking it a little too far (laughs).
And your younger daughter Akshara?
Every time Akshara stands behind the camera and says, ‘This is where I want to be’, I am reminded of myself. I started behind the camera and gradually moved to the front.
Do you think you’ve got the success that your talent deserved?
I would probably say I deserve a lot more than I’ve got.
What do you think about Rajinikanth as an actor?
When we were still in our ’20s I had asked him why he had to be so stylised on screen. He told me that’s the secret of his future success. I assured him my style would also be a winner. He turned around to say, ‘Fair enough. You do your thing and I’ll do my own.’ Rajini is a phenomenon too.
You mean Phenomenon No. 2?
(laughs) No seriously, both of us were young actors who started from scratch. He was the bus conductor with acting aspirations. I was the clapper boy who got the clap in my very first film (Kamal Haasan played a character with venereal disease in his first adult role). We didn’t have fathers to make movies for us. But we had the same godfather, K. Balachander. It’s quite strange, but our paths as actors were always intertwined. Initially we were both typecast as villains. I got fed up of doing those and went to Kerala to do Malayalam films. Then his career as a villain took off, and I returned to Chennai to pursue a career in Tamil cinema. We made our way up together.
Are you keen on doing another film with Rajinikanth?
It depends. He said if we do a film together he wouldn’t direct it. It has to be either me or someone else. It would be quite interesting to do a film with him. At the Thenali silver jubilee function, Rajini recalled an incident early in our careers when he was riding pillion on a mo’bike with me. When I sort of took a skid, Rajini asked if I knew how to ride a mo’bike. I assured him even if I fell, I wouldn’t let him fall. I was so touched when at the function Rajini said, ‘That’s what happened in our career. He never let me fall. In 1983 when I wanted to leave everything behind it was Kamal who cajoled me back to the material world’. I guess we’ll do a film together. We’ve been talking about it for five years. We’re worried about the expectations.
( Source : dc )
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