There is a certain indifference about him that makes Randeep Hooda irresistible. Aging gracefully, he’s finding new ways to stay relevant in an industry that quickly brackets actors. he will be seen this week cat, his second Netflix production, in which Randeep plays a police detective who was disbanded after the Punjab insurgency. But circumstances force him to return, this time to infiltrate the drug ring.
Ask him how he prepared for the role? “It’s been a year. I forgot, my friend! He laughs.
Edited excerpts from the conversation:
What drew you to a film like ‘Cat’?
It was the script and setting of Punjab, and the fact that the timeline runs through two of the most important episodes in the state’s history since Partition: militancy and the drug problem. I had earlier worked on a social comedy with Bally (director Balwinder Singh Janjua), which will release next year. I also saw this as an opportunity to portray the real Sikh people. they are not slapping on the thigh, scurvy-They are often portrayed as comedians or pseudo-macho people. Sikhs are cultured, well mannered and deeply spiritual people… as long as you don’t rub them the wrong way.
How did you prepare for the role of Gurnam Singh? Do you have memories of the era of militancy?
I started from the base of spirituality that I developed during my preparation Battle of Saragarhi which never saw the light of day. A lot of homework done for that film helped me here. The struggle of finding my brother resonated with me because I too have a brother. Once you get the basic premise of the character right, you can place him in various script situations that involve high drama.
I was a young boy, but I saw a lot during that time. The information came from Balli, who hails from Gurdaspur, which falls in Punjab’s Majha region, perhaps the most affected by militancy and later drugs. Marriages were not taking place in the families because there were no boys left to marry. It was really sad but it is only the backdrop of a very human drama about family ambitions and deceit.
Over the years, a section of the media has reduced you to an athletic body with a booming voice. How do you respond to that?
I always wanted to get closer to my characters, but my process didn’t garner much attention. Perhaps, there were other physical properties to focus on. But over the years, people have realized that Randeep is trying to do something deeper. It is not something that I do out of compulsion. I do it out of love for the craft. I attribute this to my training in theater and the guidance of Naseer Bhai (Naseeruddin Shah). It has been a huge asset for me and I have built on that.
Earlier I used to find that only 30 to 40 percent of what I visualized in my head and body was getting translated on the screen. Now, as I have grown as an actor, it is more and more screen appearances and that is the joy of it. I haven’t played the same character again except for a few films when I played a police officer once Upon a Time in Mumbai and followed it up with kick Because Sajid Bhai (producer Sajid Nadiadwala) wanted such a performance.
Sometimes it seems like you are brought into tentpole movies to enhance the performance of the main protagonist…
that’s fine i get paid for it (laughs), Having said that, I am stepping away from these vehicles and focusing on doing my job. I am grateful that I get opportunities and that filmmakers find new ways to see me even after 22 years in show business. This is the biggest boon in the industry which molds you and after five-six years you become jobless. I have bypassed that process by constantly reinventing myself.
Randeep Hooda in a still from the film | Photo Credit: Mubeen Siddiqui/Netflix
Do you still carry an outsider’s luggage?
I think this kind of stuff comes from a sense of entitlement which I think is wrong. Sometimes you are ahead and sometimes you are behind, but the race is long and in the end, it is up to you. This is a very personal journey.
You gave so much time to prepare for ‘Battle of Saragarhi’, but the project got shelved as Akshay Kumar decided to make ‘Kesari’ on the same subject. does it crawl?
I went to a gurudwara and apologized to the Granth Sahib for not keeping my promise not to cut my hair till the end of the film. But I had to move on and earn a living. If I had got trapped, there would have been no Gurnam. This sense of entitlement to give back to those who have wronged you in the same way is a mistaken idea; A negative way of living.
There is a saying in Haryana, Hit by the police and caught in the rain, it is better if you clean your clothes and get out (Police thrashing or someone slipping in the rain is advised to get up and move on as soon as possible).
During the three years I devoted myself to preparing for the role, I felt a deep sense of commitment. It changed me a lot as a person for the better. Hence all losses are not losses.
If a film with Akshay is offered to you now, would you accept it?
If it’s a good movie, which I doubt.
Now all eyes are on him to play the role of Veer Savarkar…
I am trying to find Savarkar for myself. It is too early to talk about it.
Now you are writing and directing it too!
It happened by chance. This was not my plan. Life happens while you are planning other things!
Kat will be streaming on Netflix from December 9