Abhishek Bachchan on response to Manmarziyaan promos: It was a boost as I feared being forgotten

Abhishek Bachchan ’s upcoming Manmarziyaan will be a return of sorts for the actor as he has been absent from the silver screen for the past two years. Bachchan, in a candid conversation, opened up to DNA about his choices in the last couple of years, the reason why he took a ‘sabbatical’ and the upcoming Kashyap directorial. Beginning the conversation on a positive note, Bachchan declared that he absolutely did not regret the decision of taking a ‘break’ from the limelight. He felt that an immediate reevaluation of his work and the method in which he approaches it, was mandatory. Always a believer in the teaching abilities of one’s choices, Bachchan felt that each film, irrespective of its success at the box office, had always taught him something. He added that good revenue always pumps up actors, but a bad review is an equal if not a better chance for him to review his mistakes as an artiste, especially since that is the kind of person he has always been. [caption id=“attachment_5101441” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Abhishek Bachchan. Image from Facebook[/caption] Abhishek confesses that the primary reason he wanted to take a step back and objectively view his work was because a sense of complacency had crept into his work, which he adds, is dangerous for performers. According to him, an actor thrives on discomfort and doubt. The ‘how’ of his work became important to him, instead of ‘what’ he was doing. With a complete lack of ‘fears’ (as he calls it), Bachchan felt he was merely “coasting along” with his work. He even consulted his father, Amitabh Bachchan, regarding his decision of taking a sabbatical. His father was unsure of it, giving Abhishek the reference of Amitabh’s own choice in the early 90’s to take a break from acting. But the son was undeterred, feeling that the objectivity was necessary. On his return, he felt a sense of relief in discovering that most people still wanted to see him back on screen. “When the promos of Manmarziyaan were out and the audience reacted positively, it was overwhelming for me because at the back of my mind, I knew that they still remember me. I heaved a huge sigh of relief. Phew, they remember me! It was a boost for sure because I had the fear of being forgotten,” says Abhishek. Stressing on the fact that the break was helpful, Bachchan reveals a poignant fact. He unabashedly claims that before the two and a half years of staying away from Bollywood, he never knew what he did not want to do. He was happily accepting any and every role as long as he could fulfill his love for acting. Now, he says he has finally heard the voice inside him which exercises a ‘choice’ in the kind of projects he gets associated with. Talking about his upcoming project with Anurag, Abhishek says the film came to him in January 2018. He had begun listening to scripts for the past one and a half years, when Aanand L Rai, the producer of Manmarziyaan, came to him with the offer of a role. Once Bachchan heard the narration of the script, he was enthusiastic. Aanand informed him that Kashyap was to direct the film, and after a 15-second pause, Bachchan says he was on-board. Explaining the reason behind the pause, Bachchan says his initial hesitation was because he thought Kashyap’s brand of film-making and the genre of love stories could not blend together. But on hearing Kashyap’s vision of the film, Abhishek was left with no qualms at all. Within four to six weeks of Bachchan’s final approval, he found himself starting work on the Amritsar sets of the film. In fact, by his own admission, Bachchan felt Kashyap was unhappy with the former’s portrayal of Lallan Singh in Yuva, a project that the two worked together on though the two never spoke about it. “Now, we’ve put all that behind us. Manmarziyaan ticked all the boxes because I instinctively knew that I wanted to be uncomfortable, have sleepless nights and this guy was going to help me do that. Also, I would never allow ego to come in the way of my work,” says Abhishek. Bachchan also says that at this particular juncture of his career, the aspect of one-hero films or ensemble films do not actually matter to him. Having thoroughly enjoyed the process of Bol Bachchan, Housefull 2 and Happy New Year, Bachchan is more than happy to cater to the audiences who he feels wants him doing good work. Manmarziyaan is scheduled to release on 14 September.