Pagalpanti Actor Arshad Warsi: “If Sholay Was Released Today, It Wouldn’t Do Well”

When he started off in Bollywood almost 30 years ago, all an actor needed to do was act. Now the scenario has changed. Actors are no longer just ‘actors. They are ‘products. They are ‘commodities that need to be ‘sold, feels Arshad Warsi.

Warsi started off as an assistant director to Mahesh Bhatt in “Kaash” (1987). He also worked as a choreographer before finally making his debut as an actor with “Tere Mere Sapne” in 1996.

“I think when I started off, things were simpler, people were less complicated and baggage was less. Now it is a bit more complicated. Earlier, you were an actor, now you are a product. You are a commodity, which needs to be sold. So, you have to dress in a certain way, you have to walk and talk a certain way, look a certain way, you have to do certain things, you have to be in the news as often as you can or all the time. Earlier you had to do just act,” Arshad told IANS.

These days a film’s fate is decided by the opening weekend box-office numbers, which was not the case earlier, notes the actor.

“The whole thing lies between Friday, Saturday and Sunday, that’s the sad part. A lot of movies need time. For example, if ‘Sholay‘ was released today it would not do well, because it did not do well at the time of release. It is because people gave it a chance, they went and saw and realised that it is a great film. It is sad that such facility is not there anymore. One doesn’t make cinema for the quality of cinema, films are now made for numbers. So, you put in things that will excite people for those three days,” he said.

In his 23-year-long acting career, the 51-year-old actor has worked in different genres but his most memorable roles are in comedy films. He has made Circuit in Rajkumar Hirani’s “Munnabhai” franchise one of the most memorable comic characters of all times in the history of Hindi cinema.

He has also worked in other comic franchises like “Dhamaal” (the latest being “Total Dhamaal“, which was declared a hit earlier this year) and the blockbuster “Golmaal” series.