Many days of childhood are missed. Watching movies after school, walking on the beach, reading books and hanging out with friends. As if it were all about yesterday. We had a small house. The mother opened a small bakery shop to cover the expenses of the house. Mother had no big dreams about me. He never thought that I should become a doctor or an engineer. He never rebuked me for studying. Being a middle class family, our dreams were also very ordinary.
We used to live in Mumbai. We had nothing to do with the film world, but mother wanted me to make a career in the film industry. From the appearance, I was not so beautiful or smart that she expected me to be a hero. Yes, because of his stay in Mumbai, he definitely had a fascination for the film world. There is a lot of work in the film industry, from cinematography to makeupman, and mother wanted me to do something like this. She used to inspire me to watch films and would often talk to me about the film. She used to ask me to pay attention to things like sound, light and picturization while watching a film in the theater. Although she herself did not know much about these things.
I was not very good at studies. Somehow, every year he passed the class. I used to think in films more than books. As soon as a film came to the cinema, I went to see. I started watching movies from the age of 12. However, I did not have a dream about working in the film industry then. After doing a diploma from polytechnical, I was looking for a job, but could not find a job anywhere. After losing, I took up a job as a waiter at the Taj Mahal Hotel. There, apart from serving food to the people, I did the cleaning of the room and other minor tasks. I was happy with my work. Till then I did not even think of working in the film. Yes, he was fond of watching films. Meanwhile, the mother was injured in an accident. After the incident, the responsibility of running a bakery shop fell on me.
I quit a hotel job and started selling cakes and biscuits. The shop had around thirty cinemas, now most of them are closed. After closing the shop every night, I used to go to see the film. 12 years passed just like this. By now I was 32 years old. During this time I got married. I felt that I should do something other than shop, so that I could earn extra. It is a matter of 1987. I bought a camera and started photography. Initially I used to take wedding photos. Then I used to get 30 rupees for taking a photo. Enjoyed photography. Taking photos was more fun than selling cakes. My drawn pictures started to be liked. I got a chance to cover many fashion shows. Soon I became a professional photographer. The 1991 World Boxing Championship received an offer to take a photo. This was a big job. I also covered big events like Miss India and Miss World. Gradually people related to film and fashion got to know me. When I started getting good money, I bought a studio.
One day dance choreographer Shamak Davar came to my studio. He said that Bman, I think there is an actor hiding inside you. No one had said this before. I questioned him, why do you think so? What do I have to do with acting? He made me believe that I can act. They took me to a theater. I met a film director there. He offered me to work in a stage show. It was a musical show. I had to do an act I was hesitant Acting in front of everyone, it seemed strange. Khar, I auditioned and passed. Could not believe for a moment. That was my first stage show. For this I rehearsed for five months. I got 200 rupees for one night show. That show was well liked. The show was praised in newspapers and magazines. The special thing was that my work was appreciated in the review. For the first time I felt that I can also do acting.
After that I did many more stage shows. Stage show work also went on with photography. I had never taken up acting training, but after doing a stage show, I realized that I had acting abilities. But I also knew that I am new in the world of acting, so I used to try to learn something from senior actors and directors every second. I read and watched all the plays to enhance acting. I believe that no matter how senior or experienced you go, you should always try to learn and try something new.
My career took an interesting turn during the stage show. I made a film together with friends. We named this film Let’s Talk. The film was never released. One day I got a chance to meet film director Vidhu Vinod Chopra. It would be called a miracle of luck. Chopra saw the film and offered me to work in Munna Bhai MBBS. This is in 2003. Thus, at the age of 44, I became an actor. Through Munna Bhai MBBS, I came to the big screen for the first time. My character was well liked. After this I got offers from all good films. In the last 11 years I have acted in about 65 films. My work was appreciated in films like Weldon Abba, Being Serious, Lage Rahe Munna Bhai, Three Idiots. I have also received several awards for best performance. Sometimes it all sounds dreamy. But from my experience I can say that there is no age to start. Whenever you want, you can give new direction to life.