The chameleonic Pankaj Tripathi slips into the skin of Atal Bihari Vajpayee in Main Atal Hoon, releasing today. Directed by Ravi Jadhav, the film traces the life and times of the former Prime Minister of India who was equal parts politician and poet and was a rare statesman who earned love and respect across party lines. t2 caught up with Tripathi for a chat on the film that releases in theatres today.

Basis the trailer, what kind of interest has the audience shown in Main Atal Hoon so far?

It has been very good. People from our film fraternity, people around us, they have liked it a lot. But I feel that the film is better than the trailer. The trailer has more high points for sure but the film is more poetic. Then again, the trailer has a different element and purpose. The trailer is edited in a way to increase people’s curiosity.

Atal Bihari Vajpayee was a man of many talents and interests. But it is interesting that you refer to the biopic of a politician as ‘poetic’...

Atalji was also a poet. The film explores his political side as well as his poetic side. It casts a keen eye on his personal life as well. The attempt has been to highlight the aspects of his life that people don’t know about.

People know his speeches and have heard his poetry, but very few know the journey of his life. Main Atal Hoon has a little life, a little poetry, a little politics. And some achievements of his are shown. But the main idea is to show who this person was and to celebrate him.

Atalji had a very long and fulfilling life, one which was very diverse in its experiences. Making a two-hour film on it is like filling a small pot from a vast ocean. What we have focused on is trying to understand unanswered aspects of his life.

Having played him now, what do you think it is about Vajpayee that made him so popular across party lines?

Everyone liked him. His political opponents used to respect him. He had a very affable personality. He was a shrewd statesman and politician, but he didn’t allow that to overpower the humane side of his personality. That’s why I felt that such a person’s story should be heard by the people. He was someone who had no enemies. And he would respect others equally.

The prosthetics and mannerisms apart, what were the emotional and mental challenges of playing the man?

The biggest challenge lay in being able to hold on to his consciousness, his thoughts and his personality. The words and the speech pattern were external challenges. Atalji was known for his poetic and powerful speeches. My idea was to look at what kind of mind space he was in before he delivered those remarkable speeches.

Understanding his thoughts was a difficult task and how to then perform it was even more difficult. I had to figure out how to incorporate it more than understanding it. That is because you can see the form, but you cannot see the thought. And that is because thought has no form.

So how did you master that?

Honestly, I have no idea what I should say. It is something that cannot be articulated. My understanding converts into my craft. If you see a beautiful piece of art and ask the sculptor how he did it, he will most probably say he doesn’t know. He saw a piece of wood and in his mind, he knew what shape he had to give it. He brought his tools and started working on it. Similarly, acting is very craft-oriented. It is very difficult to describe it.

As an actor, did the prosthetics help or were they more of a hindrance, a diversion?

The prosthetics helped me to get a look similar to that of Atalji. But no matter how many prosthetics one uses, one can’t be the same. Also, the audience knows that Pankaj Tripathi is playing this role. They won’t just come to see the look. How similar is the look? How much has it matched? The audience is not keen on that. They will come to see the journey.

The film is divided into three stages. One when he is young, then middle aged and then finally when he is old. So yes, the prosthetics and make-up helped in defining the age and in performing the age. When the hair turned white, the wig changed and automatically, the curve of my spine changed a little. According to his changing age, I adopted a different kind of walk, I looked at the speed of the walk....

This is all part of the art of acting. The Natyashastra talks about the four segments of the art of acting. It talks about the part of acting which is visible as well as the part which is not visible.

In terms of the complexity of the parts you have played, where will you place Main Atal Hoon?

The most difficult. He was a real person. I had to keep in mind how much to imitate, how much to rein in so that it doesn’t look like mimicry, and yet it should come across as a mannerism which reminds one of Ataji. This role was so difficult that I had to talk to my acting teacher for the first time in 20 years! I wanted to know how to approach this role.

But that confusion must have been exciting too...

Of course! In a creative process, confusion and nervousness are one’s vitamins.

What do you think is Vajpayee’s greatest contribution as Prime Minister, politician, and a human being?

Whatever he has done for the country has been exemplary. Whether it was the nuclear test or connecting India through the National Highway Authority, or how he led the Kargil War. At the end of the film, one will get to see his achievements and the fact that how amazing it is that a man regarded as a poet was involved in a nuclear test. India’s biggest sea bridge has opened and it is called Atal Setu. He was in Parliament for 50 years.

Is there a role that you haven’t done yet and are dying to play?

I want to play the role of a different gender than myself. But it should not be a caricature. It should not be played for laughs.

You have often spoken about wanting to slow down. Has that happened yet?

I have slowed down. After the release of Main Atal Hoon, I will take leave for a month and a half. I am someone who cannot act for too long and I cannot rest for too long. After finishing a film, I want a break of at least 25-30 days. I need time to remove a film from my body and mind before I plunge into the next film.

Do you watch your work now? You told me earlier that you don’t like watching yourself on screen...

Even now I don’t like to. The producer of Main Atal Hoon forced me to sit and watch the film. I told him that I don’t watch my work. He said: ‘No, no, you will have to watch it!’

On which Indian political leader, dead or alive, would you like a biopic to be made? Tell
t2@abp.in