Pankaj Tripathi has a busy year ahead with films like 83, Bachchan Pandey, Oh My God 2, and web series in pipeline. The versatile actor is currently promoting his upcoming film Bunty Aur Babli 2.
Talking about his busy schedule the actor recently said, “I want to slow down. I have been working day and night. Even when I was shooting for the role of Jatayu Singh in Bunty Aur Babli 2, I was working very hard doing many intense roles.”
However, Bunty Aur Babli 2 was a refreshing film for Tripathi. “That is why I had a lot of fun working on this film because it is such a fun film. I felt a sense of relief because I didn’t have to do anything serious, nothing intense and the humour was there. I did not have to get into too much preparation as well. I had to laugh and make people laugh.” he shares.
Pankaj also reunited with his Omkara co-star Saif Ali Khan for Bunty Aur Babli 2. “I had a lot of fun in Omkara. I was very new. I had two scenes with Saif in the film, one when we meet and the second when I am killed. I used to watch Ajay Devgn and Viveik Oberoi with Saif back then. Saif was brilliant as Langda Tyagi, and the film surprised everyone. Now we sit and talk about it,” he quoted.
Pankaj has definitely found his place in his audience’s hearts. The very humble artist however feels that it is not only because of him. “I don’t know it must not just be my work, but someone above who is orchestrating this. It cannot just be my control on my craft, but something spiritual as well. Once I was on a plane and the flight attendant came and told me that her mother who has multiple dysfunctions in her body always smiled when she saw me and that brought a smile to the attendant’s face too. I just put up my hands towards the heavens and sighed that I am able to do this. Stories and characters in stories are always a relief for people in tough times,” he says.
Pankaj’s ability to maintain a steady balance between good cinema and playing the entertainer makes him the amazing artist that he is. Talking about the same he says, “I have always tried to maintain a sensibility within the entertainment. I have tried to not lose the sensibility. The content and purpose should not get diluted or overshadowed. You have to maintain a balance.”
His characters too become very popular. “If you do your work with sincerity and put in a lot of hard work, people like and remember the character – be it Kaleen Bhaiyya, Sattu Bhaiyya or Pandit from Fukrey. I hope Jatayu Singh will also be like that,” Pankaj explains.
“Acting and filmmaking are not about badla or revenge. For me acting is not wrestling where you beat up someone in a scene or defeat someone. Acting is a job where four wrestlers come and make a scene look good,” Pankaj further adds.
Pankaj is essaying the role of a cop in the film and has got Saif and Rani Mukerji tied up in front of a running train in the trailer.
“This is the first time that I have played a cop in mainstream comic entertainer. We also used to play chor police and loved it. Jatayu also thinks that he is a super intelligent policeman. And he wants to be the greatest and what he does is the fun part,” Pankaj was quoted syaing.
Pankaj also believes that good writing is back “We used to hear stories from our grandmothers as a child. They were always engaging and interesting. We have new writers like Varun Sharma in this film. The boy is from Kanpur but has studied abroad and he brings in a great mixture in this film which is set in UP. He has a different way of looking at things and the east west experience adds the flavour in the storytelling,” he concludes.
Helmed by Varun, Bunty Aur Babli 2 also stars Siddhant Chaturvedi and Sharvari in lead roles. Film will hit theatres on November 19.
