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Teachers' Day: Actors Rasika Duggal, Adil Hussain and others thank their mentors
On Teachers’ Day, four actors talk us about the one artiste in Indian cinema who has had a profound impact on their craft and lives.
Learning that one signature move or style of dialogue delivery or the perfect body language on screen.... there’s so much actors learn from their seniors in the film industry. On Teacher’s Day, celebs reflect on that one artiste who has had a profound impact on their craft and their life. Actors Rasika Dugal, Adil Hussain, Aahana Kumra and Pratik Gandhi share stories about how these mentors have shaped their careers and artistry.
Rasika Dugal
For Rasika Dugal, it’s working with female directors that she has “enjoyed and learnt” so much from. And one to top the list is Mira Nair. “I have been an ardent fan of Mira Nair’s work since I first watched Salaam Bombay and then her other works including Mississippi Masala and A Monsoon Wedding sealed the deal. So, getting an opportunity to work with her in A Suitable Boy was a check on the bucket list. I was totally inspired to watch Mira at work. A woman who owns the place she has made for herself with immense talent, dignity, an undeniable sense of fun and mischief and a childlike spirit which is so endearing. She inspires me in the way she nurtures herself as a creative person and in the way she conducts herself as a professional. There is something beautiful about getting to watch someone do what they do when they have been doing it for so long... and doing it so well,” shares Dugal.
The actor further shares how she was amazed at the way Nair staged a scene. “Staging a scene with multiple characters and many entries and exits (and A Suitable Boy was full of scenes like those) is, to my mind, one of the hardest things to do as a director. Ideas and thoughts were welcome and encouraged from everyone involved in a scene and she had the talent and experience to pick out a good idea from a cauldron of many rambling thoughts and make a moment of it. It was so much fun to be part of this process,” she recalls.
Pratik Gandhi
One person that Pratik Gandhi has learned a lot on his journey from is director Hansal Mehta. There are a lot of things to admire in him but most of all, he likes his simplistic approach towards work. “Hansal sir likes to keep things simple when it comes to storytelling, which is not easy. The narrative that he has in mind and the manner in which he passes it on to the actor is incredible. I have always called him an actor’s director.”
He goes on to share the experience of learning to be a better actor on the set of Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story. “He lets you explore the character in whichever way you want and that’s what I think has helped me grow. He never discussed the details of my role in Scam. The only advice that was given to me was to make it a part of yourself - whether it’s your walk or your smile or the way you talk,” shares Gandhi, who has worked with him in several other projects including Modern Love Mumbai.
Calling Mehta a very underrated director, he says, “He does not go by the formula or set storytelling formats and he taught me to never put myself in that box. Because no matter how many people like it now, they will get bored of seeing the repetition after a point. He taught me not to become predictable and that’s the biggest asset for any actor including me.”
And this bond with Mehta goes beyond work. “Apart from professional advice, he taught me life lessons as well. There is a lot to learn from his life experiences. He is also a friend who has helped me with several day to day things.”
Aahana Kumra
There are two people the Aahana Kumra consider her mentors — Naseeruddin Shah and Makarand Deshpande. “Naseer sir was my teacher in film school and he trained a person like me who is not easy and has so many questions all the time. I remember how he’d not give up on me no matter what. He always said, There are no bad actors, but lazy actors’. He’d make me read the script, rehearse until I drop dead to the ground,” she shares, adding that’s because he is a very hardworking person himself and wants everyone around him to work equally hard. “My training with him was very rigorous and it’s because of him I learned all that,” recounts Kumra.
Coincidently, Kumra got to work with him in her very first film, in which she was supposed to do a very emotional scene. Recalling how she got a scolding from the mentor, she tells us, “There were a few people on the set who were my friends and got very chatty. Naseer sir caught hold of me, literally scolded me for chatting and told me to concentrate on the scene. And I did exactly what he asked me to and I kid you now the outcome was great. I did get a pat on the back from him at the end.”
Second person she looks up to is Makarand Deshpande, but Kumra says he is complete opposite of Naseer sahab. “He is not at all strict and will let you make mistakes and fail, without getting angry. But because he doesn’t get angry with you, you don’t want to fail. I have been doing theatre with him for 15 years and with every show, I have learned and grown,” she says, adding, “I am glad that because of both of them, I understand the importance of rehearsal. I know how to repeat things. Their difference personalities created a balance for me and I will forever be indebted to both of them for everything they have done.”
Adil Hussain
For Adil Husaain, his biggest mentor has to be Naseeruddin Shah. “We used to watch him in films and then he became my teacher at National School of Drama, where he taught me for several months,” recalls Hussain, adding, “He is a very passionate artiste and loves to go deeper into the craft. Also, he makes sure that his students understand the subtle aspects of acting that he has understood over the years.”
But he is equally strict, quips Hussain. He goes on, “During the NSD days, there was an exercise called Action problem and he gave me a situation where I was supposed to interact with my father. So he brought in actor Ram Gopal Bajaj to play my father and I was asked to look for him in the scene. So as the scene began, I started screaming him name and he (Naseeruddin Shah) stopped the exercise in between. He said, ‘Are you doing a television series? Why would you scream his name standing at one place and not looking for him around.’ I got a good scolding from him. I am still traumatized by it. But that’s because he wants to see you doing your best.”
Having said that, Hussain says his mentor is extremely appreciative. “I remember him coming to see Othello, which was my first act. When I got to know that he has come, I was terrified but had no other option but to act. I tried my best to act well and then I locked myself in the toilet of the green room to avoid facing him. But someone called me out and said that Naseer sir is here to see you. I came out, he saw me and gave me a hug and said ‘I’m so proud of you,’” recalls Hussain
