Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.
© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Actor Bobby Deol opened up about turning to alcohol as a ‘support system’ when his career took a turn for the worst. Bobby said that he would remain at home, and drown his sorrows in drink. The situation became so bad that he started behaving bitterly towards his near and dear ones, who began to fear the person he turned into after having a drink. He said that it was an offhand comment made by one of his sons that knocked sense into him. He decided to give his career another go, and began working on himself. In an appearance on Raj Shamani’s podcast, Bobby revealed that he has been sober for more than a year.
Asked about his darkest moments, Bobby said, “I’m working for my family. And if I see fear and sadness in their eyes… It’s not like I used to drink every day, but whenever I would, they would fear me. They just didn’t know how I would be. It’s horrible. Alcohol is the biggest addiction; it’s more addictive than actual drugs. It messes with your brains like narcotics.” He said that his career lull coincided with his father and brother also experiencing professional setbacks. “I was going through a bad time, my brother was going through a bad time, my dad was obviously not working as much. House was going through pressure. But my brother would never show us that pressure. They never let me take the responsibility, they always hid the stress from me. Now I feel, ‘Why did they do that?'” he said.
Bobby said that he would drink without caring about what it was doing to his mind and body, because he still thought of himself as a working actor. “I was not seeing the mirror too often, to see how I was looking. And what was I most liked for? My looks, more than my acting. I used to be home, and one day I heard my son telling my wife, ‘You go out to work everyday but papa only sits at home’. And that changed everything for me. I just couldn’t handle that. What kind of father was I being…” he said.
During his lowest times, he said that he became a bitter person who started blaming the world for his misfortunes, and becoming envious of his contemporaries without recognising the hard work they were putting in. “You start believing that you’re worthless, and it brings you down. And because I’m so emotional, it made me weaker. Alcohol was my only support at that point. I started drinking a lot, not realising what it was doing to me. I kept blaming the world for misunderstanding me and not recognising my potential. I would get jealous of other actors, but not think why they were succeeding. People were liking them because they were working hard. Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan are who they are because of their self-belief and hard work. Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar, my brother, Ranveer and Ranbir…” he said.
Remorsefully reflecting on the impact that his drinking had on his family, Bobby said, “Only the people closest to you are exposed to that angry and dark side of you. My wife… It was anger, behaving badly, saying stupid things. That’s what alcohol does to you. It messes with your brain. You don’t know what you’re saying. It’s just anger. People think alcohol makes people say the truth, but it’s not the truth; it’s the pain inside you coming out. But those closest to you face the brunt of it, they have to tolerate it and make sense of it. That’s why I finally stopped drinking. It’s been more than a year.”
The actor bounced back with a supporting role in the film Race 3, after which he was hired to headline the MX Player series Ashram. The show brought him back to the limelight, and since then, Bobby’s resurgence has only become stronger. He was acclaimed for his villainous performance in the blockbuster Animal, and can now be seen in Aryan Khan’s Netflix series The Ba***ds of Bollywood.
Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.
