'I'm in a position to choose my roles'

Makarand Deshpande was in a really playful mood.

He was in Bandra, shooting for a B4U interview.

Sophiya Haque was prancing around the room with a bandaged arm.

"I dislocated my shoulder," she answered my puzzled look.

Both of them giggled helplessly at some unknown joke.

A minute later, the mood changed (for no apparent reason) and the two of them murmured amongst themselves. They broke into a loud laugh. Sophiya left.

Along with her went the cheerfulness. And Makarand got down to business with Ronjita Das:

You have not been an integral part of out-and-out commercial cinema. What is the reason for that?

Right from the time of Sayeed Mirza's, Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro to Satya and Jungle, I have been a part of cinema that I have really enjoyed.

But I have done some mainstream roles too. Like Mahesh Bhatt's Sir.

Right now, I'm doing Snip. Maybe I've bagged these roles because of my theatre background. Maybe people feel I fit into these types of roles.

To tell you the truth, I really enjoy doing these films.

You seem to have managed to break the drug addict-alcoholic image you were stuck with a while ago.

I think that happened because of my theatre background. I realised that being part of a film just to use the negative character of my old films, for my next film makes no sense. Today I'm in a position to choose my roles.

How did Snip happen?

Snip happened to me in a very funny way. Knowing Sunhil Sippy's background, I wondered how I would ever fit into his film. That, too, with my kind of looks. But we had met before and I quite liked him for his unique humour. He told me that he had a character in mind for me.

I was quite surprised with the character, an egg-seller on the streets of Bombay. He had so much soul, and he dreamed of buying a rickshaw of his own.

Six months later, Sunhil rang me up and said, "It's happening and you're in it!"

Snip is due for release. And I feel I'm part of a very important film. Being such a substantial part of it is quite an achievement for me as an actor.

Can you elaborate on the character you're playing?

Abdul, an egg-seller, is a very simple, hardworking and soft-hearted man. He's been saving money for seven years to buy a rickshaw.

He then sets off to his trusted friend (Anupam Shyam's) house. He is the one who has been saving Abdul's money. Only to discover that this guy has been shot dead and the money's missing.

Finally, his dream does come true, but it has bloodstains on it.

It's a very humorous film. Very exciting, too.

I think such films should be encouraged and youngsters exposed to them. Only then will they become aware of this kind of cinema.

How was it like working with Sunhil Sippy?

Like working with a friend. I was free to improvise on my shots. And if he didn't like something, there was no bitterness, no ego hassles. It was fun working with him.

Once, he wanted me to retake a shot. I felt that it was just right in the second take. But he kept on reshooting it.

Finally, he stopped, but I could see that he was still unhappy about the shot.

When we broke for lunch, he told me he was actually happy about it, even apologised to me because he was upset about something else and took it out here!

And Sophiya?

She is full of love and warmth. And very professional. She is very particular about her shots.

We've been very intrigued by each other -- maybe it's because we are poles apart. But we've always been excited to meet. Like today.

I hope we do another film together.

Unfortunately, I didn't have any scenes with her in the film. But just being on the sets for a few sequences was enough to feel she was part of us.

Were there any unusual incidents on the sets?

I kept fighting with the cinematographer! He would say that theatre artistes are always dancing around.

"Spontaneity is not cinema," he would always say and laugh about it. But I must admit that he had a point.

Once, there was this sequence where I could see he was not too happy. I looked at Sunhil and he would okay the shot. So because of me, there would be war between them!

I didn't know whose side to take.

I decided to follow the director.

And risked the cinematographer's displeasure. He probably felt I was the worst actor!

Then he saw the film. And he said, "I think in some places, Makarand was required to go overboard!"

What other films are you working on now?

I'm working on this interesting film called Lal Salaam, in which I play a Naxalite leader.

A bunch of Naxals are fighting for the rights of the tribals in the jungle. It's a story about exploitation and how the Naxalites fight against it.

Sharad Kapoor plays a doctor who feels that you can fight without weapons. And Nandita Das, a victim, turns into a Naxalite. The shooting for the film is almost over now.

There's another film called Ek Aur Visphot, where I play a Municipal Commissioner.

Are you doing any plays at the moment?

I've written, directed and acted in a play called Basant Ka Teesra Yauvan, which also stars Sonali Kulkarni.

I am working in Sir Sir Sarla with Amol Palekar. I've given him the script and I will be directing the play.

Any plans to direct a film?

Well I have a script in mind. I've also written the dialogues. But it'll take some time. I don't want to talk about it yet.

But tell us something about it...

It will be a humorous love story. It will be produced by Akash Deep, the producer of Ghaath.

And who is your current favourite actor?

Hrithik!