He is no Khan, Kapoor or Bachchan. He is Akshay Kumar, who for long has been known to be one of the most underrated actors of Bollywood. Yet he continues to carry himself with a tinge of subtlety and professionalism. During a press conference of Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, which is set to hit theatres today, a reporter asked him a question that he must have been asked numerous times: How do you manage to look young in front of new age actors?
In his usual humble tone, the actor, who grew up in Delhi, mentions that living simple is what he believes in. “There’s not much science to it. I have only one job in life and that is to make films and take care of my family. I feel there’s no stress in my life. Even when I was living in Chandni Chowk, we were 22 people living in a one-bedroom house and were happy,” says Kumar and adds, “I try to be fit and work out regularly. I eat good and avoid meetha as much as possible. One should always try to live a simple life.”
One also never tends to forget that Kumar is one of those actors who has continued to be open towards new directors. From Airlift and Jolly LLB 2 to Rustom, we have seen Kumar in entertaining cinema.
Speaking about Toilet..., which highlights the issue of open defecation in India, he says, “Around 8-9 months ago, 54 per cent Indians didn’t have a toilet at home. And the number has now come down to 32 per cent. I am glad that we have been able to bring the cause this far. We now live in times where no girl agrees to get married to a person whose house has no toilet. Gone are the times when women used to sit back and listen silently.”
Open defecation, says Kumar, is a cause not restricted to villages alone — “Defecating in the open is directly related to our health and us. It would be wrong to think that it is a problem in villages only. It is there in cities as well.”
While it was previously reported that the Central Board of Film Certification asked the film for eight cuts, the actor states that the censor board asked only three verbal cuts.
“I was surprised to read the news about eight cuts. That information is completely wrong. The film was asked for three verbal cuts, one of which was the removing the word h*r**mi from the film,” he clarifies.
