Having made an impact with heavyweight dialogues delivered in his deep baritone and his theatrics in films, Shatrughan Sinha hardly needs an introduction. However, it has been a while since he has made an onscreen appearance. So, we caught up with the actor-politician for a tete-a-tete at his Juhu residence, Ramayan.

Over hot cups of tea, Shotgun opens up on a spate of topics ranging from his stardom to equations with Amitabh Bachchan and Rajesh Khanna, to his late comings on the set . He also speaks of the shocking list of films which he rejected and shares with us the advice he gave daughter Sonakshi when she entered films.

It couldn’t have been easy to make a mark in Bollywood with so many heroes already ruling the roost when you entered the industry…

It was definitely not easy. People used to say I have a
kati-phatti shakal when I wanted to become a ‘hero’. And if I settled for a villain, they’d say that Pran saab was doing a very good job and Prem Chopra was very handsome. I was told to undergo plastic surgery and I had even got ready for it.

Then?

Dev Anand saab, who was very fond of me, told me that I should retain my originality just like him. He told me he didn’t do anything about the gap in his teeth and eventually people started loving that. He assured me that people would appreciate me too very soon. I listened to him and it turned out to be true.

Did ‘Kalicharan’ turn out to be the game-changer for you?

Post ‘Kalicharan’, I was in demand and writers had started writing roles with me in mind. But I had done quite a few films even before that in which I was noticed and liked. What also worked in my favour was that I had a very good equation with all my co-actors. I had no problems with Raaj Kumar. It was industry talk that Shatru could get away with anything with Dharmendra. I was also very friendly with Rajesh Khanna, even though I had a preconceived notion that he would have a starry attitude.

But, to answer your first question, it was definitely not easy for me to make my mark. Even then, groupism was prevalent in the industry. Shammi Kapoor had his own group, as did Rajesh.

You mean they preferred working with a certain set of people…

Yes. But then, such things happen everywhere. People like to work with the people they prefer.

It was said that you reported late on sets…

I was also on time on numerous occasions. I was once shooting with Amitabh Bachchan for ‘Kaala Pathar’ and the call time was 4.30 am; I was there on the dot. For Gautam Ghose’s film ‘Antarjali Jatra’ in Kolkata, too, I was up on time as we shot early in the mornings.

I didn’t go late deliberately. I was just very particular about doing a round of yoga before leaving for work which took time, so I was invariably late. I would sometimes report around 12 noon, maybe even 12.30 pm, for a 9 am shift. But I had a very sharp memory; still do. So, I would read my lines and finish my takes in one go. That way we would finish even before time. I was a one-take artiste. If another take was required on an odd occasion, I would tweak it slightly so that the filmmaker had the option to choose the better one. No producer could ever blame me for a film’s delay which explains how I have done 10-11 films with Manmohan Desai and 13 films with Harmesh Malhotra. Why else would these producers repeat me? Do you know I was offered ‘Sholay’, ‘Deewar’, ‘Satte Pe Satta’ and ‘Achanak’ too?

Three of those four films eventually went to Amitabh Bachchan. Was that what caused friction between you two?

Not at all. All these things keep happening. Someone might be the first choice for a role but it eventually goes to someone else. Perhaps the makers, at some point, realise that some other actor would be better for a role, or at times I couldn’t have taken a film due to date issues, which was the case with ‘Sholay’. I think the character of ‘Jai’ was one of the last ones to be cast. Ramesh Sippy was very keen that I do it, but I just couldn’t accommodate the film. Such things don’t spoil relations; even today, Ramesh Sippy and I are on very good terms.

So what caused the friction between Amitabh Bachchan and you?

It’s the price you pay for stardom. I have nothing against Amitabh; I hold him in very high esteem and have only love, affection and regards for him. Yet if someone asks, I say:
Chhodo kal ki baatein, kal ki baat purani. Naye daur mein likhenge milkar nayi kahani (Don’t talk about the past, let’s begin afresh).

Rajesh Khanna and you also had a fallout of sorts…

Yes, Rajesh was very upset when I contested against him in a by-election. Honestly I didn’t want to, but couldn’t refuse L K Advani ji. I tried explaining this to Rajesh but he did not like it; we didn’t speak for quite a long time. However, we did start talking after many years. I wanted to go and apologise to him when he was in the hospital and hug him- but sadly, he passed away before I could do that.

What happened with ‘Achanak’?

Producer NC Sippy wanted me. I still don’t understand why they called me to their place in Juhu at 6 am every morning for nearly one month to discuss the film if they were not going to cast me. We used to play badminton as well. It’s the same plot where now Amitabh’s bungalow Jalsa stands. I don’t know what happened and why they didn’t go ahead with me.

How was your equation with Vinod Khanna and Shashi Kapoor?

Vinod Khanna was reserved and professional. Shashi was a very jovial person. Once, Shashi had jokingly come after me with a belt to hit me for coming late. I told him they had cast him because of his punctuality and me for my talent. He went, ‘Dekho, how shamelessly he says that’. It was all in good humour, obviously; Shashi and I had a great camaraderie.

You pulled off many dangerous action scenes in the ’70s and ’80s. Any, in hindsight, that you think you shouldn’t have done?

I particularly remember the one where I was very close to a train in ‘Kalicharan’; it was dangerous and I had a verbal spat with Subhash Ghai ji over it. Then there was a film where I jumped into the water from the top of a hill. In my excitement for a perfect shot, I had even forgotten that I didn’t know how to swim. Even Amitabh has been a part of many such dangerous scenes. But Dev saab never liked it when we or any other actor took risks to do his/her stunts themselves.

That reminds me that there was a duplicate used for you in ‘Naseeb’ for a dance sequence…

Yes, Rishi Kapoor had spoken about this. For a song in ‘Naseeb’, I was asked to do some very tough Russian dance steps, unlike Amitabh and Rishi who had simple ones. I made it clear that
mujhse nahi hoga (I won’t be able to do it). So, a duplicate was called for. But when the film released, it was I who got maximum praise for the dance (laughs).

You have a very special, deep, resonating voice but it is loud as well. Can I ask you if some filmmaker asked you to tone it down?

(Smiles) People loved my loud voice but yes, Gautam Ghose wanted me to tone it down for his film ‘Antarjali Jatra’ due to the kind of role I was playing.

Which films would you pick as your best three?

‘Dost’, ‘Kalicharan’ and ‘Vishwanath’ can be bracketed together, ‘Antarjali Jatra’. Actually, my answer does not matter here. This is a question for the audience.

Any film that you now think you shouldn’t have done?

Lots, actually. Some were not conceptualised well, others were not executed well. Also, I feel I didn’t suit some of the characters I played. I don’t want to name those films as that would amount to hurting the makers.

On the other hand, there were roles in films like ‘Khudgarz’ which people think no one else other than me would have been able to pull off. I had even redesigned the dhoti I wore in that film to a pant; not that I didn’t know how to wear a dhoti. I am from Bihar, I know my way around one.

Were your roles ever cut, which you realised only while watching the final cut?

It must have happened, I remember something like this taking place during ‘Mere Apne’, but I don’t blame anybody. I managed to become a hero after starting out as a villain but some heroes didn’t like that. There were some who envied my style and didn’t want me to succeed, and others who got angry because I fetched more claps than them. They wanted me out. If it wasn’t for the audience, I might have remained a villain or maybe my career would have been over. I am not obliged to any filmmaker for my stardom; I am obliged to only the janta who accepted me wholeheartedly. In fact, during ‘Kalicharan’, people did not go out in the interval, and if they did, they returned before it resumed; Shabana Azmi told me this.

Coming back to ‘Kalicharan’, NN Sippy wanted Rajesh Khanna to play the title role…

There were many people who didn’t want me in ‘Kalicharan’. But Subhash ji (director) was very keen that I should do it. He was my senior in FTII and we were very close. He considers my wife as his sister and visits us every Raksha Bandhan. There has been nothing in my life that he doesn’t know about.

Why don’t we see stars coming together for multistarrers today, like it used to happen earlier?

You cannot cast today’s three-four big heroes like Salman Khan, Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan. The cost of the film will be humongous and the returns will not justify the expenditure.

Heroines you were most comfortable with?

Hema Malini, Reena Roy, Poonam Dhillon, Anita Raaj.

Are you in touch with them?

Yes, I am.

Were you comfortable in romantic scenes? Weren’t you associated more with confrontation and action scenes?

Not really. I was quite comfortable with the romantic scenes as well. Magazines wrote that I had cocktail eyes and bedroom eyes, and even termed me as ‘Lady Killer’ (chuckles).



How would you describe your marriage of 40 years with Poonam Sinha?


She is a great lady who has been the backbone of our family. Home has been her first priority. It was due to her that I could do both films and politics with ease. She never left the kids at home even when she joined me for some outdoor shoots.

Are your kids Sonakshi, Luv, and Kush closer to her than to you?

She has had a larger hand in their upbringing, so, naturally, they are closer to her. Sonakshi was closer to me but Poonam has gradually taken her too away on her side (laughs).

Did you have a piece of advice for Sonakshi when she entered the industry?

I have never differentiated between my sons and daughters. Her first offer ‘Dabangg’ came from Salman Khan with tremendous respect. I remember Sonakshi was not very interested in it back then as she was doing a course in fashion designing- but I told her to consider it. All I told her was to prove herself to be better than the best and different from the rest.

Why don’t we see you in movies nowadays?

Many filmmakers want me back. But I would like my roles now to suit my standing and stature and respect my socio-political image. I am reading a few scripts at the moment. You might hear an announcement soon.

Are you happy with the films being made today?.

Technology has advanced but music has become noise. The action has become too violent and aggressive, and the soul is missing from films. Of course, there are brilliant actors and some very good movies are being made with them. But, there has been a shift from brains to brawns. It is unlikely that we will get films like ‘Mother India’, ‘Mughal-E-Azam’ and ‘Do Bigha Zamin’ in future.