Pankaj Tripathi says he used to be worried about where his life would head while he was a student of the National School of Drama (NSD). But he worked hard to put his worries to rest. Today he’s done a variety of roles from Atma Singh the CRPF officer in Newton, to Narottam Mishra in Bareilly Ki Barfi and the most recent Rudra Bhaiya in the superhit film Stree to the lead now as Kallen Bhaiya in Mirzapur.
The humble man with a great sense of humor, Pankaj Tripathi tells Hot Friday Talks that no matter how popular he may become, he will still remain the same old innocent guy he is. “ Dekhiye kitna masoom hai ye chehra,” he jokes. He is aware that being arrogant just because he’s become popular now, will not help. “I am still the same, even though now I have seen success and am doing so many projects, and I know I am popular, but stardom is not permanent. There will be another Pankaj Tripathi some day. I am the same person I always was,” he adds. He also feels that besides thinking of popularity, they as actors have to be happy first with the characters they are doing.
Besides the different characters he plays in his films and shows, Pankaj says what he also finds fascinating about his profession is that around 200 people, from the cooks to the dress walas, actors, directors, etc. get into cars with a 100 page script in their hand and travel great distances to make a film on those 100 pages. “Someone sits here in Mumbai and writes a script, someone puts in the money to make the film and a crew of 200 people travel all the way to make a film. That fact itself is so fascinating, so interesting,” says Pankaj.
Pankaj is a well-known name today in the Hindi film industry, some people go to watch films only because he’s a part of it. But like most actors, he has had his share of struggles too. He says, “I had never imagined that after coming to Mumbai that I would be as successful or my dates would be booked in advance. I came here for survival and hoping that I would be able to run my house, take care of my family by acting in films, but life took an unexpected turn and things are much better today.”
In Mirzapur, he plays the lead character but the humble person he is, he denies that and says, “I am not the lead character in the show, all of us are leads. Each one is in this show is important and everyone is the lead in the show.”
Pankaj is now excited about his next film titled Kaagaz, which is based on the life of Lal Bihari who fought a legal battle for 18 years to prove that he is alive. Pankaj feels that his hard work has paid off. “I understand that hard work always pays off. Also today, supporting actors are getting respect and recognition and that is very encouraging.”
His other projects include Shakeela biopic, Hrithik Roshan’s Super 30, Luka Chupi and Abhi Toh Party Shuru Hui Hai. Here’s wishing this extremely talented actor All The Best!
