Humans are the only ones who are the custodians of other people's morals.
Naseeruddin Shah
I am from a place called Sardhana, which is near Meerut.
The film industry does not interest me greatly. The people, I don't mingle with them much. I meet them when I have to.
An actor can never voice his opinion through films. All an actor does is convey what the director and writer want to say. You are a mouthpiece of their ideas. Your ideas reflect only in your choice of movies.
I feel anxious for my children because tomorrow, if a mob surrounds them and asks, 'Are you a Hindu or a Muslim?' they will have no answer.
An actor's job is to find variations of the same emotion in his being so that every time he expresses grief or joy, it doesn't look the same.
It's completely beyond comprehension that you just can't say anything without offending somebody or the other.
I am the king of old school romance.
Acting is fun, but directing is very stressful.
It was the '70s when mediocrity came in Hindi films. That's when the actor called Rajesh Khanna joined the industry. For all his success, I think Mr. Khanna was a very limited actor. In fact, he was a poor actor.
I never go to film festivals. I am allergic to them.
I had decided never to dye my hair because by doing that, it doesn't make a man look young. In fact, I feel the wrinkles on a man's face become more prominent when you dye your hair.
Unfortunately, in our country, crying is mistaken for good acting.
I don't scoff at the desire to make good movies. I scoff at the quality at poseurs masquerading as masters of the medium.
I don't see a future for Broadway-style theatre in India. We already have Hindi cinema, but small, intimate theatre will survive as long as people feel the need to talk to each other.
I had many doubts while writing my autobiography. I wasn't sure if anyone would be interested to read about my life.
When we finally become total slaves of mobile phones, then maybe theatre will die.
During the shooting of 'Manthan,' I lived in the hut, learnt to make cow dung cakes and milk a buffalo. I would carry the buckets and serve the milk to the unit to get the physicality of the character.
Shakespeare is a seminal story-teller. I don't think he imagined he was writing classics or that he was writing great poetry. I don't think he dreamt his work would be staged 400 years after he died.
It's a blessing to stay a child all your life - pretend to be this and that. And get paid for it.
When I saw Spencer Tracy in 'The Old Man and the Sea,' I realised the distinction between being an actor and a film star. He was both, and I, too, resolved to try and be both.
The magic of theatre is how much can you stimulate the mind of the audience, not how many illusions you can create.
A person takes his own path. My father tried to guide me the best way he thought I should go, and it didn't work. I went the way I wanted to.
Nobody can send me to Pakistan. India is my country, and I love my country. Five generations of my family have lived and died on this land, and even my children will live in this country because this is my homeland.
My dream is to produce a generation of actors who realise what the function of an actor in a movie is supposed to be.
There was a time when I only wanted to show off, but as I've grown older, I've realised that acting isn't an end in itself. You act to communicate something, and if you have to use an accent or become thin or fat, that's part of your job.
I can say with pride that I have a brother who served with distinction in the Indian Army.
I have the highest regard for the police forces.
I was lucky to land up in Mumbai when serious cinema was just beginning to flower.
One would marvel on the screen the way Shammi Kapoor walked, Dilip Kumar cried, or seeing Dev Anand's style. And then, one day, you are in the same space with them. It's very unreal.
When I see an emotion being enacted by a great actor, I always feel I can never do that.
People think I am joking when I say my favourite actors are Shammi Kapoor and Dara Singh.
There are some movies that you feel like doing because of the script. Some because it sounds like fun, some because that's the director you want to work with, some because it's a project that you want to be involved with, and some because you will be paid lots of money. But the bottom line is I must feel like doing it.
'Bombay Boys' is among my favourite movies and my favourite performance of myself.
Finally, I have realised that it is important to look good.
I have gone into every project with the same enthusiasm and the same hope, but some have worked out, and some haven't.
My dad occupied a government position, deputy collector, in a city called Nainital, so we had access to the cinemas at any time. I saw my first movies when I was very young.
Somehow, Hindi movies never took me in the same way Hollywood films did. Even at the age of five or six, I could see the difference in the quality of execution.
What drew me into being an actor was that I never got cast in the school plays - and it used to kill me.
I've always found people with physical disabilities interesting to watch: how the dynamics of their body work, what makes them move this way or that.
'Macbeth,' I am ambivalent about. I don't like that play, in fact.
Playing the good guy is boring. I love twisted, flawed characters.
I do enjoy thinking about the past.
I have had enough of an interesting life to not embellish it in any way.
I am hard put to think of a single positive thing that commercial Hindi cinema has achieved.
I don't think cinema has the power to change anybody's life.
Don't opt for acting as an escape from education.
When my brother came home from NDA (National Defence Academy), I felt, 'Wow, I should like to wear that uniform.' But I didn't want to join the army.
Film industry people don't read books.
The only serious function films can serve is to act as a record of their times.
