Gulshan Grover is a force to reckon with in Bollywood, and has successfully created a brand for himself. In an exclusive interview with ETimes, the ace actor opens up about his ‘Bad Man’ image, the changing face of villains in films, and more. Excerpts…

Did you ever find yourself carrying your on-screen character even after the camera stopped rolling?
I think it has purified me. It is like therapy. In many spiritual remedies, they say when you are sad, cry it out. You should take it out of your system. When you feel you want to dance and jump around, you should just do it. Similarly, for me, playing negative roles has been like therapy. It cleanses me completely. After shooting, I am far calmer and relaxed. Many actors claim that when they play negative roles they carry it even after the shoot. I don’t understand that; it should not be the case.

Do you think the larger-than-life villains have vanished from the screen today?
I would have agreed with this till a year ago. Larger-than-life villains disappeared because cinema represents real life. Writers create roles based on incidents, news reports, and their own research. The demarked villains, that you see right from the first shot, have disappeared. Today, they have taken different shapes–there are villains in the form of nice guys-next-door, businessman, or a politician. A car coming to a screeching halt, the person inside throwing out a cigarette, before himself stepping out blowing the smoke from his mouth is passé. So villains have changed shapes now, and specialty villains like me have blended with them.

However, from the last one-and-a-half or two years, they are being recalled. Like trends that cannot be put away for a long time, they have come back. I am a part of visionary director Shankar’s ‘Indian 2’, starring Kamal Haasan and Kajal Aggarwal. I am playing a negative role in the film and it shows me as a villain in the biggest way possible. They have shot one of the most expensive introduction scenes for me. In his last film, he presented Akshay Kumar as the villain in a grand way too.

Now, there is a conscious effort to bring back those villains and evolve them in today’s circumstances. Obviously, this won’t happen in all the films. But they will come back.

You have created a brand for yourself as ‘Bad Man’ in the industry. Was it a conscious effort?
It is absolutely a conscious effort. After completing my education, when I entered films, I realised that I wanted to be a star. A star has a recall value. I also chose to become a villain based on what I felt while I was training under Roshan Taneja with my batchmates like Anil Kapoor and others. Another reason to become a villain was that I feel villains have a longer shelf life. Their longevity is not based on personal vanity and good looks, but on their performance. They don’t have any age bar. And also because I felt it was quite challenging. It suited me very well so I chose to play one.

At that time, I tried very hard to create this brand for myself. I was offered various kinds of roles and even though I wanted to work, earn money, and stay relevant, I chose to decline the offers of playing positive roles, supporting roles, funny roles and others. My seniors were quite shocked with my decision. I wasn’t sure if I was doing the right thing then. But today, I feel I did the right thing. Those sacrifices translated into creating this brand of ‘Bad Man’, that I am very happy and proud of.

Your son Sanjay Grover returned to India after spending 15 years in LA. How was it staying away from him for such a long time?
Firstly, it was very difficult but it was our combined decision, more of my decision to send him to study in Los Angeles. While his intention was to finish his studies and come back to India, he got one of the best job offers from a Hollywood studio. For an Indian kid to be in a Hollywood studio at such a big position, was a dream. So he accepted the job offer. It was good for him. I was a proud parent. I would run to LA at every given opportunity to be with him.

I emotionally blackmailed him and made him return to India. He had enough experience to do something here. He agreed and is finally here in Mumbai. He is currently working on various scripts. Two projects are ready, which, by the grace of God, we will start soon.

Unlike you, he is more into making movies than featuring in it. Did you ever want him to act?
This is just the beginning. I hope eventually, he will venture into acting as well.