Shekhar Suman Compares Himself With Dilip Kumar, Aamir Khan: 'People Have This Thirst to Watch Them'

Shekhar Suman is currently basking in the success of Heeramandi. The film marks his return to the big screen after the 2017 film Bhoomi, starring Sanjay Dutt. However, Shekhar doesn’t like to think of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi as his comeback. In a recent chat, he drew comparisons with Dilip Kumar and Aamir Khan and said that the hiatus was because no roles excited him enough.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Shekhar Suman said, “I am quintessentially a theatre actor. It is never a comeback. You are just waiting for the right role to happen. There might be a hiatus, you give it a gap, because the role has to excite me. I don’t work just for the sake of being seen that I am a part of 10 OTT series, five films.”

“I have taken a leaf from Dilip Kumar sahab. He used to probably do one film in two-three years. Aamir Khan… they all sort of preserve themselves in a manner that people have this thirst to watch them. There is no point in getting steeped into mediocrity, that is very painful for an actor. In the midst of a show or a movie, you realise that you’ve made a mistake. That’s the worst feeling,” he added.

When asked if there is ever pressure to be seen as an actor, he said, “There is never a pressure. Yes, a want, a desire to be there, to be seen around, seen in extremely good roles, roles that would surprise the audience. Not just surprise them, shock them. That’s where the fun lies. I would want to do something that would challenge me, something that I’ll lose my night sleep over. Something that makes me want to sleep with the script every night before I go to the set and keep thinking and evolving, figuring how to do it the best possible way.”

Shekhar also opened up about working with Sanjay Leela Bhansali and said, “It depends from actor to actor, if you are prepared and you are ready, then he is the easiest to work with. However, if you are terrified and you are not confident of your own self then there might be a problem and that’s where he probably gets a little impatient because he expects you to come completely prepared and at the same time be completely open to change and improvisations.”

“It is great fun to work with him. I think, for an actor, it is the ultimate excitement to work with him because you can do your scene in so many ways, you are not straight-jacketed, you are not compartmentalised, and he gives you that latitude to open up and perform,” he concluded.