Paresh Rawal on Bollywood’s Reality, Oscar Awards, Anger & Baburao | FO427 Raj Shamani
Raj Shamani talks with actor Paresh Rawal (Figuring Out, FO427) about anger, family, marriage and four decades in Bollywood. Rawal admits his anger is violent and recalls breaking a stone over a man's head as a young man. He describes his father as friendly but firm - the kind who never stopped him from risk, only stayed alongside - and says that is the model of fatherhood he believes in. On marriage, he says he decided on the spot that Swaroop would become his wife, yet argues no couple ever fully knows each other: the commitment is to grow together. On the industry, he contends that actors survive while stars come with an expiry date, that several good actors disappeared because they could not network or build multifaceted public personalities, and that social-media armies are no substitute for craft, citing Ranbir Kapoor and Vicky Kaushal as actors who stay relevant on work alone. He also discusses what makes characters like Baburao and Munna Bhai endure. All views expressed are the speaker's own. The episode includes a sponsor read for Porter, the logistics service.
Executive Summary (TL;DR)
Raj Shamani talks with actor Paresh Rawal (Figuring Out, FO427) about anger, family, marriage and four decades in Bollywood. Rawal admits his anger is violent and recalls breaking a stone over a man's head as a young man. He describes his father as friendly but firm - the kind who never stopped him from risk, only stayed alongside - and says that is the model of fatherhood he believes in. On marriage, he says he decided on the spot that Swaroop would become his wife, yet argues no couple ever fully knows each other: the commitment is to grow together. On the industry, he contends that actors survive while stars come with an expiry date, that several good actors disappeared because they could not network or build multifaceted public personalities, and that social-media armies are no substitute for craft, citing Ranbir Kapoor and Vicky Kaushal as actors who stay relevant on work alone. He also discusses what makes characters like Baburao and Munna Bhai endure. All views expressed are the speaker's own. The episode includes a sponsor read for Porter, the logistics service.