13 August,2011 09:15 AM IST | | Anjana Vaswani
Actor Paresh Rawal makes his comeback on the Mumbai stage after nearly a decade with a Hindi version of Umesh Shukla's God versus atheist comedy. The hard-core actor tells The Guide how his on-stage avatar will mouth your suppressed thoughts
Making it on time for an appointment for the time-slot on your calendar that directly follows an interview with a Bollywood celebrity, would ordinarily qualify for an entry in a book of world records for stupidity -- the filmy bunch, after all, are notorious for their tardiness. But, we were not worried. We were to meet with Paresh Rawal, an actor whose work speaks volumes of his professionalism. So, we expect he'll be on time -- perfectionists usually are --and Rawal doesn't disappoint.
A simple, framed clock mounted on the wall in the waiting area of his Juhu office has barely struck one when the actor walks in, almost as if on cue. We're escorted into his cabin just moments later, and, looking around, while Rawal punches the keys on his slim cellphone, we notice garlanded idols on a shelf overhead and a large Om mural on one wall. Yet the actor's playing an atheist on stage in Umesh Shukla's comedy, Kishan v/s Kanhaiyaa. Kishan is an antique dealer who questions the very existence of God. We had a list of questions for Rawal, but this one now tops it.
Are you deeply religious? If so, was it hard to get into the skin of this character?
I do believe in God to a certain degree, but not merely in idol worship. Gai Ki Devi, Sone Ki Billi -- I don't stock faith in superstitions such as these. In act, these aspects of religion are debated in Kishan v/s Kanhaiyaa. So, getting into this character was easy. He's a remarkable, Galileo-like character, rebelling against age-old beliefs.
I'd say I believe in the religion of humanity. Especially considering religion ka kabada jo yahaan hota hai (the way religion is distorted here). A dialogue from the Hollywood film, Emotional Arithmetic, says it best -- "If you ask me if I believe in God, I am forced to answer, does God believe in us?"
Usually, you go all out to get into character. Are you saying this role didn't require much preparation?
When I say the character is me, I mean that he vocalises my thoughts. But that's the most glaring thing about this play -- you'll find that my character says the things that we've all thought of, but were hesitant to discuss or just afraid to talk about. The shades of one's own character do reflect in whatever role one is playing, but good acting is always difficult, whether that's for a theatre or a film role. When it comes to theatre, in fact, the job requires a gelling of the entire team. Despite having completed 100 shows overseas, we've still put in a month and a half of rigorous rehearsals, because even if you understand the character perfectly, it takes practice to be able to trigger that persona on cue.
So, if it's the complexity of characters that thrills you, which characters in this play do you find most interesting?
God -- the ideology of this character is very interesting. But the play is completely peppered with such ideology, in truth. At one point, for instance, when asked what role religion plays in the individual's life, my character remarks, "Ya aadmi ko darpok banata hai, ya phir aatankwadi." (Either it turns man into a coward or a terrorist).
On August 15, 7.45 pm
At Rangsharda Auditorium, Bandra Reclamation, Bandra (W).
Call 26401919 Tickets Rs 200, Rs 400, Rs 600 and Rs 800
