I’d like to call myself a newcomer: Boman Irani

It’s hard to label him under a particular genre as actor Boman Irani has excelled in each performance of his. And once again, in Farhan Akhtar’s Don — The Chase Continues, his Vardhan act takes evil to a different level.

“It’s exciting to play a character you’re not — quite a discovery it always is. Vardhan is a bad guy and there’s no redemption for him, neither does he seek it. Nobody would want to be his friend or enemy. He’s intelligent, vile and a great foil to Don,” Boman informs, adding, “His ambivalent disposition is what draws me to him.” The film, a one of its kind since it’s the sequel of a remake, comes at a gap of five years. “There’s no shelf life for a good film and no sensible director would follow up a film with a sequel immediately, whatever be the franchise, unless of course, it’s been planned as a trilogy. The right take and script are crucial,” he explains.

Quiz Boman if there’s any on screen persona that resembles him the most in reality and he says, “All the characters I play have the potential of being me — how else can I be convincing? I think the role I played in Onir Anirban’s Sorry Bhai was closest to me — a proud, easygoing parent. But it’s no easy task to be oneself on screen. A lot depends on how willing one is to give a part of oneself to the role. The easy way out is to live a lie, more so when you are paid to lie.” The old team of Farhan, Ritesh Sidhwani (producer), Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra and Om Puri along with Boman are back, along with some new faces, of course. “Strangely, we never felt the need to start forging bonds anew — it just felt like an extended schedule from last time,” states the actor, recollecting his first ever trip to Berlin, the card playing sessions and so on.

Moving on from Don, there’s Sajid Khan’s Housefull 2, in which he is seen shaking a leg with the likes of Mithun Chakraborty, Rishi and Randhir Kapoor. After eight years of acting, Boman feels he has a long way to go. “I’d like to call myself a newcomer — I don’t plan my moves. I’m happy I did all the films I did. Everything doesn’t need to be from a career or money perspective,” he says.

There’s no wishlist, he’s just happy acting. “I need to think and act — it’s important to plan how to make a character work,” Boman ends.