Shekhar Suman: Comedy is the last in my list of priorities

Actor Shekhar Suman's TV show 'Movers & Shakers' was a huge hit and thereafter, he hosted and judged TV shows for many years. Ask

Shekhar

if he felt that the actor, was somewhere lost in all of that? And he says, "There are different ways of looking at it. I was acting even on 'Movers & Shakers'. There was a role and an image that I had to follow — there were gigs and sketches and so, I was still acting. Since I had been a part of many fiction shows before 'Movers & Shakers', yes, the satisfaction of that kind of acting was missing. Also, I realised that I was getting too much into the comedy zone and that was not me; I am quite the opposite. Comedy is the last in my list of priorities. I like intense roles or roles with shades of grey, but comedy just happened along the way and I did something that India had not seen before — stand-up. Even I didn’t know what stand-up comedy meant. I just enjoyed standing in front of the audience and performing. I am happy, because I learnt a new craft; getting into a zone where you are completely on your own was a huge challenge and television doesn’t give you any time. I did a few films back then, which I enjoyed doing. I was offered Chunnilal’s role in 'Devdas' (2002), which I couldn’t do, and that remains my biggest regret. But then, you win some, lose some... you cannot have everything in life."
For more of the interview check Bombay Times tomorrow