Interview: Prem Chopra happy to be a villain

You are one of the few actors who have a career spanned over 50 years. What can that be attributed to?

It’s all about discipline, determination and devotion. I wanted to be there (in Bollywood) no matter what happens. I faced pain and hardship. But that could not deter me.

You came to Mumbai (then Bombay) from Shimla, could not make it in Bollywood, went back and then again came back. What encouraged you to keep trying?

The itch in me never went away.  When I decided to try my luck in Bombay for a second time, I told myself that I have to get a job there first so that even if nothing happens at least I will have some money in hand.  We were a large family of five brothers and one sister, so I could not possibly be a burden on my parents.

When you played the baddie, there was a tinge of humour to your ‘evil’ side. Was that your idea or the filmmaker’s?

In our times, our characters were not scripted in isolation like today’s time. The directors, writers and actors – all used to sit down together, take each other’s suggestion and work on the character. So the characterization used to be a mutually created product.

You are considered as one of the best-looking villains in the history of Bollywood. How would you react to that?

I love it when people give me such compliments. Praises always encourage an actor to do better.

Is it true that you became a villain by chance while trying to fit in a hero’s shoe?

Everybody, who comes to this industry with starry dreams in his eyes, wants to be a hero. There is no denying the fact about it. And I was no different. But now when I look back, I find it is better to be a character actor like a villain than a hero.

Why?

You see, filmmaking is a commercial business. And if the film works, the hero feels like the king. But if the film fails, it is the hero who is affected the most. But we character actors are assets of the film. We do our work instead of worrying about the outcome of the film, yet we are indispensable; the plot can’t move forward without us. Hence, career-wise villains have more longevity than heroes.

In today’s films there are no separate categories for heroes and villains. The heroes are very well carrying shades of grey in their films. What do you think about this changing concept?

Yes, you are right. Today’s heroes love doing negative characters. Leading men like Aamir (Khan), Salman (Khan) and Shah Rukh (Khan) have all done grey roles. In a way it’s good. The only difference is, in today’s time, there is a reasoning stated behind the hero turning bad. In our times, on reasons were given for our villainous traits.