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Priyadarshan reacts to Paresh Rawal saying Hera Pheri role ‘choked’ his career: ‘He jumped for it; promised to put his soul in it’
While the role of Baburao Ganpatrao Apte in Priyadarshan's Hera Pheri made him a pop-culture icon, Paresh Rawal has often stated that it led to him being typecast in similar characters.
Actors Paresh Rawal, Akshay Kumar and Suniel Shetty with director Priyadarshan on the sets of Hera Pheri. (Express archive photo)
Although Priyadarshan’s contributions to Indian cinema are immense, and his repertoire boasts several far better cinematic ventures, he is best known in Bollywood as the director of Hera Pheri (2000), one of the most celebrated Hindi comedies of all time. A remake of Malayalam director duo Siddique-Lal’s Ramji Rao Speaking (1989), Hera Pheri features Paresh Rawal, Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, and Tabu in the lead roles and has since become one of the most acclaimed films in the careers of pretty much all involved.
While the role of Baburao Ganpatrao Apte made him a pop-culture icon, actor Paresh Rawal has often stated that it has led to him being typecast in similar characters. Reacting to this, Priyadarshan said during a recent conversation with Pinkvilla, “When I was making the film, I called Paresh, explained the role, and asked if he wanted to do it. He jumped for it then. I told him clearly that he’s the hero of the film and the other two (Akshay’s Raju and Suniel’s Shyam) are the supporting characters. He said, ‘I will put my heart and soul into it.’ He had mostly been playing villain roles till then. So, he did the character and earned it. Now he can decide where to take it.”
In an interview with The Lallantop once, Paresh had even referred to the role as “gale ka phanda (a noose around his neck).” “I felt choked. I needed mukti,” he said, adding, “I went to director Vishal Bhardwaj in 2007. In 2006, Hera Pheri 2 was released. I told him that I have a film. I want to get rid of this image. You are the person who can offer me a completely different role in the same getup.”
When asked what the update was on Hera Pheri 3, Priyadarshan stated that a final decision on the project hasn’t been made yet. “There are a lot of legal issues. We can start the film only after those issues are sorted,” he added.
Despite his penchant for remakes, Priyadarshan maintained that he has never tried to copy and paste exactly what was shown in the original movies. Instead, he pointed out that he has often ensured the works are adapted to suit the sensibilities of the audience for whom he was remaking the film.
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“Most of the remakes I have seen look like South Indian films. I couldn’t digest this even back then. So, whenever I create a remake, I don’t make it exactly like the original. I just take the soul, and I rewrite,” he shared. The filmmaking legend also asserted that the era of remakes is over, as people already have the option to watch the original films “in all their glory.”
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