Indian-born British actor, Roshan Seth, who is best known for portraying Jawahar Lal Nehru in Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi, says he is not inclined towards working in Bollywood.
“I am not interested, infact I am too reluctant to work in Bollywood because the functioning of the industry here is completely different to the kind of work I have done in Hollywood. So I find it difficult to fit in,” Roshan told PTI in an interview.
Citing an example, the 71-year-old actor said, “In Bollywood, the actor would not know his dialogues when they begin shooting for the day.
The bigger star he is, the lesser possibility of him having learnt his dialogues. I can’t do that.” Seth, who was last seen in Ek Tha Tiger in the role of Salman Khan’s mentor, believes that the Bollywood industry needs to sort out certain things before it begins to compete with other film industries.
“As far as the entertainment factor is concerned, the Indian film makers have got it right. But there are certain fundamental questions which need to be sorted before embarking upon any film making journey,” Seth said.
“Questions like why people make films, what stories the audience like to see, and what should be the screenplay which works not only commercially but aesthetically, need to be answered,” he added.
The actor has several critically acclaimed performances to his credit including those in Hollywood films like Mississippi Masala, Not Without My Daughter, My Beautiful Laundrette, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Such a Long Journey, and Street Fighter: The Movie.
However, having worked in Bollywood movies like ‘Guru’, ‘Monsoon Wedding’ and ‘Ek Tha Tiger’, the actor asserts that its difficult for any Bollywood actor to make debut in Hollywood.
“Once you get used to working in the ‘Bombay’ set up, its difficult to fit in there. Though there have been Bollywood actors who have worked in Hollywood movies, but thats what has been my general observation over the years,” said the actor who was recently at an event at Oxford store here.
Seth, who was born in Patna went ahead to hone his theatrical skills at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic art after studying history at St Stephen’s college in Delhi. The Genie Award winning and BAFTA Award nominated actor believes that acting schools do help to make any actor stand out in the industry crowd.
“Acting just not requires skill, it requires ‘a set of skills’.
Few people might be gifted with some skill, but the set of skills is developed over time only and hence the acting schools really prove to be helpful,” he said. Seth, who also played Jawaharlal Nehru in ‘Bharat Ek Khoj’ – a 53 episode series on Doordarshan in 1988, says he always wanted to be an actor. However, the actor believes that its important to be at the right place doing the right thing. (PTI)