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Ali Fazal says he lost many good projects trying to balance Hollywood and Bollywood

Ali Fazal talks about how tricky it is to balance Indian and international projects, and why he stars in Hollywood films without much fanfare.

Updated on: Jul 12, 2025, 06:12:18 IST
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Actor Ali Fazal has been part of several international projects over the years, ranging from cameos in blockbusters like Furious 7 and Death on the Nile to starring roles in Victoria & Abdul and Kandahar. However, several times, these appearances have come at the cost of other roles.

Ali Fazal had a prominent role in Gerard Butler-starrer Kandahar.
Ali Fazal had a prominent role in Gerard Butler-starrer Kandahar.

On balancing international and Indian projects

In a chat with HT, Ali talks about how tricky it is to balance being a part of both Indian and international projects. "It is tough," he says, "The real hard part is that I lose out a lot. There are two to three projects that I feel bad at losing out on. My colleagues have done them and done a good job, so it would be unfair to name them. But it's all good. I am happy for them."

Ali says that trying to work in the West means he often has no releases in India for long durations. "There is a common complaint when people say 'tum itna dikhte nahi ho (you aren't seen much)'. But what can I do when I am trying to balance the two industries? I have seen the other side, so I want to do more work there," he explains.

On doing Hollywood ‘sans fanfare’

We point out to him that he stars in several big Hollywood projects without much fanfare, as opposed to several other Indian actors. Ali laughs and responds, "I am not oblivious to it. I don't have an 'I don't care' attitude. I do care. At the end of the day, we are presenting ourselves, and I want to do that."

For now, the man is focusing on Hindi cinema. He recently starred in Anurag Basu's romantic drama Metro In Dino. Up next for him is Rajkumar Santoshi's Lahore 1947, which also stars Sunny Deol, Preity Zinta, Shilpa Shetty, and Shabana Azmi. He will then reprise his role as Guddu Pandit in Mirzapur, the movie. The film will act a culmination to the popular Mirzapur show.

  • Abhimanyu Mathur
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Abhimanyu Mathur

    Abhimanyu Mathur is Deputy Editor, Entertainment at Hindustan Times. With almost 15 years of experience in writing about everything from films and TV shows to cricket matches and elections, he inhales and exhales pop culture and news. Currently, he watches movies and TV shows and talks to celebrities for a living, while occasionally writing about them as well. A journalism graduate of Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, Delhi University, Abhimanyu began his career with Hindustan Times at the age of 20, swapping classrooms for newsrooms at an early age. He began his journey in the early days of digital journalism, later switching to the madness of print journalism. Work has led him to far off places like Japan and Jordan, as well as to the interiors of Haryana and the Indo-Pak border. He dabbled in city reporting in places like Meerut, Gurgaon, and Delhi, covered the Olympics and Cricket World Cups, before finding his calling in entertainment and lifestyle during the pandemic. A Rotten Tomatoes Certified Film Critic, he is equally at home covering stories on ground as he is interviewing celebrities and studios, and sometimes prefers to shepherd teams in delivering traffic through the day. Even as his role has evolved from reporter to supervisor over the years, his first love remains writing (and of late, talking on camera). With a good understanding of cinema and its trends, and a keen eye for detail, he continues to spark conversations around showbiz for readers around the world.Read More

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