Marathi Actor - SHREYAS TALPADE - Interview
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After putting in performances in Marathi theater and television serials, Shreyas Talpade, rose to fame with Iqbal and Welcome to Sajjanpur.
Basics on Shreyas Talpade
Shreyas Talpade was born to Bhupesh Talpade on 27th January 1976 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. He studied at the Shree Ram Welfare Society’s High School.
He is married to Deepti who is a clinical psychologist and counselor, whom he met on a visit to her college.
Talpade was seen in Marathi stage shows and operas on television. He was popular in his role as Tejas on the show Damini.
Shreyas Talpade’s Movies
2002 to 2005 In 2002, he landed a small role in Vipul Amrutlal Shah’s Aankhen as the chaiwallah. After working in Marathi movies like Pachadlela (2003) and Savarkhed – Ek Gaav (2003), he got a good opportunity with Nagesh Kukunoor’s Iqbal as an aspiring cricketer. He was nominated for the Filmfare Best Male Debut Award.
2006 to 2009 In 2006, Talpade was seen in another critical success Dor, directed by Nagesh Kukunoor. Farah Khan’s Om Shanti Om (2006) was a commercial success. Talpade played Pappu, Shah Rukh Khan’s best friend.
He was seen in another movie by Nagesh Kukunoor called Bombay to Bangkok. Shyam Benegal’s Welcome to Sajjanpur saw him as Mahadev, who writes letters in his village. The sequel Golmaal Returns had him playing Laxman, which was played by Sharman Joshi in Golmaal.
In 2009, he will be seen in a brief appearance in the John Abraham starrer Aashayein; a horror movie Click; a comedy directed by Subhash Ghai called Paying Guest; Aage Se Right with Kay Kay Menon and Mahi Gill and Season’s Greetings.
The experience was extremely good. I took a lot of efforts for the movie. A producer has a lot of responsibility. Acting is totally different from production. Actors are just required to come to the sets, dress-up and give a shot. They are always pampered on the sets. But a producer has to take care of everything from pre-production to post- production, the response of the audience etc.
How is production of Hindi movies different from Marathi movies?
I did not find much difference in both the forms. I think the main difference is in the budget. Hindi producers put in a lot of money in making the movie. We tried to make'Sanai Choughade' lot on the lines of Hindi movies. We have not compromised on the quality. The songs, the costumes, the location have been used of the best quality. I like it when non- Maharashtrians tell me that they liked my movie.
How was it working with Deepti?
Working with her was good. She helped a lot on the sets. Whenever I was busy with my shooting schedules, the chipped in for me. She looked at things from an audience’s perspective and corrected me on occasions.
What would you like to say about a young star cast?
The star cast was chosen to suit the script. It was not about big stars. Even Nagesh (Kukunoon) had chosen me for his movie and I was not a big star that time. Subhod and Santosh suited the script aptly. I have worked with Subodh earlier and liked him as an actor. People tend to have pre-conceived notions of an ideal son, father or even mother -in-law hence we found a new face for the role of the daughter-in-law.
Why did you give the responsibility of direction to Rajesh Patil?
I did it for two reasons. I was working with him in a movie called ‘Sawarkhed Ek Gaon’ and that time I jokingly promised him that I would produce a movie one day and give it to him to direct. The second reason is that I had seen him work as an assistance director. He has the ability to get work done from people. He is a sensible person and being of the same age, it’s easy for us to communicate with each other, to accept and reject ideas.
How is your relationship with Subhash Ghai?
He is a great person. I have worked with him for three and a half years. Over the years our relation has moved from professional to personal or rather a friendly one. We celebrate occasions together. I have developed a good rapport with him. But on the sets we are purely professional.
Are you planning to make another movie?
Certainly now with the success of sanai choughade I am more optimistic. But I want to concentrate on my acting right now as it is my main focus. There is certainly something on the cards but I am waiting for the right script.
Many of the youngsters are getting attracted toward film industry. Not just because of glamour. Not just for acting. But even in the production. There is lot of struggle for them. You have gone through it. So what would you like to suggest them?
Struggle is everywhere and one cannot avoid it. I strongly suggest them to enter in the industry only after getting formal education of the field. There are lots of good schools are available. Another thing is, decide what you want to do. Whether you want to frame your career as a director or editor or you wanna handle camera. Then work hard and achieve excellence. Then sky is the limit.
