This story is from January 31, 2008

Acting helps me pay my bills:Ranvir

DIPANNITA GHOSH BISWAS / TNN / Jan 31, 2008, 00:00 IST

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He is known for his powerhouse performances. But actor Ranvir Shorey says that until recently, it was direction and not acting that topped his priority charts.

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Ranvir Shorey. (TOI Photo)He is known for his powerhouse performances. But actor Ranvir Shorey says that until recently, it was direction and not acting that topped his priority charts.
Mithya has been long due for release...
That’s the reason behind this tête-à-tête. Mithya is going to hit the theatres soon and it’s the story of a struggling actor, hailing from a small town.But circumstances are such that instead of a role, he lands up with a part in real life.
Apart from Mithya, you have a bagful of films lined up for release this year...

(Laughs) Do you call that a bagful? My idea is to give the audience a taste of Ranvir but not give them an overdose at the same time. There’s I am 24 with Rajat Kapoor, Neha Dhupia and Manjari Thakur, Teesri Manzil with Irrfan and Deepal Shaw, an ensemble cast in Sirf, Singh is Kingg with Akshay Kumar. I am currently shooting for Agli or Pagli with Mallika Sherawat and Nikhil Advani’s Made in China for which I’m leaving for a two-month schedule in China soon.

Is it a conscious decision to juggle between a healthy mix of mainstream commercial flicks and low-budget ensemble cast films?
n It definitely isn’t a premeditated decision. Mainstream or budget films don’t matter to me. What matters is the script, the director and the part, not necessarily in that order though.
Your role in Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd is not one an actor would like to sink his teeth into?
Exceptions can always be made for friends and Reema is a close pal. She always wanted me to be a part of her debut project.
Ranvir Shorey is considered to be one of the most promising actors to watch out for. Does this put you under too much of pressure?
I don’t want people to expect too much out of me. I can only give them as much as I can. The audience is sacrosanct for me. They put faith in me, trust me and I will try my best to live up to that.
Apart from the pressure, do you feel you have finally achieved something?
At one point of time, I was desperately hoping that I could make a living out of films and now it has become a luxury that helps me pay my bills. Truly, I never dreamt of becoming an actor — I always wanted to be a director. But that has taken the backseat now simply because I am happy donning the greasepaint.
Do you feel that the new genre of low-budget films has given actors like you a greater opportunity to make it big?
Multiplexes have definitely created an economy where people can experiment. But I don’t think it would be right to say that the audience has recently started appreciating good cinema. In the name of new, you can’t obviously feed them with any rubbish. In fact, I firmly believe that audiences don’t fail, films fail — there’s something that goes wrong.
Finally, is marriage round the corner?
n As soon as I decide on it, the world will know. But if you are expecting to hear about it very soon, let me tell you that it’s not in the near future.

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