They called Jackie uncle wooden too: Sooraj Pancholi

To those who said Sooraj Pancholi was “wooden” in his just-released film Hero, the debutant says: “I wasn’t born when it happened. But didn’t the critics back then call Jackie uncle wooden in Hero? In fact I am told the reviews for Subhash Ghai Saab’s Hero in 1983 were pretty unflattering.”

“Everyone in this country worships the past. The old Devdas by director Bimal Roy would remain a classic until someone else does another version of the story. Then Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Devdas would also be considered a classic. I guess we will have to wait for another version of Hero before we’re treated kindly,” says Sooraj.

Defending his performance, he adds, “My character is inhibited and highly complex. How do we know what kind of a past he had? The chap I played is an introvert. I couldn’t have played him as loud and demonstrative.”

Sooraj also defends his director. “Nikhil Sir (Advani) had set out to make film a 1980’s blockbuster as a launch vehicle for me and Athiya. It was a job assigned to him. And according to me he did it very well. I couldn’t have hoped for a better launch.”