Being Cyrus

Muscle aches have become anchor,actor and funny man Cyrus Sahukar’s constant companion. The long hours of standing on stage,at the sets and the shoots,have done their damage and left him in incredible pain. All Sahukar wants to do now,is lie down,maybe throw in a massage too. “I had been doing a little math,and realised that I have done 975 live events in the last ten years — this apart from television shows,anchoring,running spoofs,doing theatre,and now,films,” says Sahukar,who will now be seen in director Sahil Sangha’s,Love Break Ups Zindagi (LBZ ).

Call it coincidence,the actor will be playing a Delhi boy,yet again. After Rang De Basanti,Delhi 6 and Aisha,he’ll be playing Govind from the Capital,in LBZ. “Govind is someone who breaks away from all conventions,traditions,social pressures and begins living life at 30 all over again,” says Sahukar,who wanted to sign the film the moment he heard the script. “Had mosquitoes not unleashed a full throttle attack on Sahil and me,I wouldn’t have waited till the second narration,” laughs Sahukar about the first meeting with Sangha and how the thought of malaria made him abort the conference half way. Second time,he was in.

For Sahukar,cinema,is a different ball game when compared to television now. “Television is difficult,tiring and physically draining while in films,all one does is sit and wait. It gives one a lot of thinking time and space,” says Sahukar,who adds that he is enjoying this new stint,and as an extension,is also penning a script. And comedy it is. “Comedy is a way of telling the truth nicely. It helps one deal with life in a much better way. Look at Charlie Chaplin,a tramp with no money,Mr Bean,the man who sleeps with a teddy bear; these are lonely people. So how can they be happy? This is the epicentre of comedy,for it’s based on reality,” iterates Sahukar,who feels that comedy in India is finally coming of age. “We are a hilarious nation and we are just finding our sense of humour,” he says.

Sahukar says that his script is taking its own time ,and that he would rather write than direct . “Writing itself is a tedious process and I want to stick to it and let someone else direct ,” confesses Sahukar but he is at it,writing the film,which is a superhero’s story turned on its head. While this will take time,Sahukar,famous for his spoofs,mockumentaries and caricatures like Semi Girebal and Piddhu,is all set to create a new television project. “We need something beyond singing and dance shows,” he says. We agree.