Want to try horror now: Riteish Deshmukh

Riteish Deshmukh has always been successful in the comic genre, which is why his entry as the baddie in i impressed everyone. However, he didn’t grab more such roles. Instead, he opted for Banjo, in which he played a struggling musician as liked the role. He then returned to the comic fold with Housefull 3. And now he is ready with another comedy, Bank Chor. But this isn’t all that he has on his plate at the moment. His next Marathi production is ready, while work is on for the ambitious biopic on Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s life. Riteish touches on several topics in this tete-a-tete. Excerpts…

A bank-heist comedy is something you haven’t attempted before. What convinced you to take up this film?

There are all these genres you want to do. Until now, I hadn’t done a bank robbery film or a particular action one… I’ve always wanted to do a bank-heist film. Bank Chor has quite an intriguing concept — three guys enter a bank on the worst day possible. Everything that could go wrong, does. Humour comes from the most serious of situations in the film. And it is relatable humour. Horror is one genre I want to attempt. In that genre, I have only done one episode in Darna Zaroori Hai.

Of the Marathi one-liners, how many are your contributions?

When the film was narrated to me, it was about three bank robbers. So, we had a few discussions about what happens, what are the dynamics between these three people, etc. They are three strangers. The character I play has hired them. He is a Maharashtrian and the other two are North Indians. There is this whole debate through the film about Mumbai being better than Delhi or the other way around. There are these various layers that the humour will play at. I really like that banter, while the bank robbery is going on. They start out as strangers and have to come together do this job and end up trusting each other.

Multi-starrers is a space that you have explored many times. You have been part of movies like Dhamaal, Masti, Housefull, etc. Is that your comfort zone?

It’s not a question of comfort. It’s about the script that you like. Every film is bound to have more than one actor. And for those characters, if you start getting good actors, it starts becoming a multi-starrer. Multi-starrers happen because so many good actors are confident about the content. That’s why they start lending their names to it, in the first place. This film could have been with newcomers. Usually, you keep doing films that are exciting, at that point. Some films work, some don’t. So you move on.

After Ek Villain, did you not want to explore grey characters further?

I didn’t think that there was anything exciting that came my way, in that space. Then I did i, which I thought was an interesting role for me. Unfortunately, the film didn’t work at the box- office. Nevertheless, I enjoyed playing that character — a slightly brooding drunk. Last year, I did Housefull, which worked. Bank Chor was in a light-hearted space and I wanted to do it.

Will you attempt another negative role in the future?

I would love to. But it needs to be written with as much love as the one in Ek Villain was.

Has your movie on the life of Shivaji Maharaj been postponed?

I believe we have almost locked the script and are going to start the pre-production soon.

Didn’t you grow out your hair for this project?

After Banjo, I had free time and wanted to do a few look tests. The movie will start sometime soon.

What kind of comedies do you like to watch?

I love dark humour. I like slice-of-life or poker-face comedies. I also enjoy the Dumb and Dumber kind of madcap comedies.

When it comes to comedy, which actors are your inspiration?

There’s Sanjeev Kumar, Kishore Kumar, Kader Khan, Govinda and Paresh Rawal. I think Rishi Kapoor has an incredible sense of humour. The thing about Rishiji is, he is not trying to make you laugh. He is very serious about the situation and the fun comes from that. He is not cracking a joke. His character is so serious that it’s funny. He is a fantastic actor. I really love him.

What are the five comedies you can watch any time?

Andaz Apna Apna, Chupke Chupke, Maalamaal Weekly, Dhamaal (the first part) and Dumb & Dumber.

After 14 years in the industry, has the way you select movies changed?

Sure. That’s because the kind of movies that are being made, are different. The choices I’ve made have been different. Things are changing around constantly. Every time a film is successful, everything around starts changing for that film. But yes, you have to be aware and I am enjoying my space as an actor and a producer, so I am very happy.

What about pre-release pressure?

There’s a sense of nervousness every time, an anxiousness... The thought of how the movie is doing, what the people think. It’s part-and-parcel of the business. That’s why I do movies. To know what people think... whether the timing was correct. For example, was this what people wanted to watch at that point of time?

How do you deal with failure now?

There is a certain maturity right now when it comes to dealing with success or failure. I give myself only that Friday to celebrate the success of the film or mourn for the failure. On Saturday, I have to get back to work. That’s why you will never see me harping on any film’s success, I don’t do that. That’s not me. I move on very quickly.

After producing Marathi movies, will you back any Hindi movies soon?

No, I am only producing Marathi content right now. My film Faster Fene is almost ready and the post-production is on. A couple more films will start by August or September.