Nawazuddin Siddiqui says nobody made big-budget films with 'GOATs' Om Puri, Irrfan Khan: Jab zinda the tab qadr ki nahi
Nawazuddin Siddiqui spoke about how Bollywood has not utilised the talents of acclaimed actors in commercial big-budget films to the full.
Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has lamented accomplished and acclaimed actors in the Hindi film industry being put in a box over the years, and relegated to mid and small-budget films. In a new interview, the actor said that acclaimed actors like Om Puri, Naseeruddin Shah, Irrfan, and Manoj Bajpayee were never cast as leads of big-budget films, even though the audience wanted to see them.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui says GOAT actors didn't get their due
In an interview with Pinkvilla, Nawazuddin spoke about the GOAT actors of the Hindi film industry and said, "From Naseer sahab (Naseeruddin Shah) to Om Puri, then Pankaj Kapur and Irrfan Khan and Manoj Bajpayee; these are the greatest actors of our film industry. But unfortunately, nobody thought about making a big-budget film with them as leads. Nobody thought about this,s even though people in India were crazy about watching them on screen. They were wonderful actors, but their cinema could never reach the masses. They say there are public's actors and industry's actors. But the films of these public's actors are not reaching the public. It saddens me."
The actor added that while everyone fondly remembers Irrfan and Om Puri after their deaths, nobody offered them big films during their peaks. "Aaj sab Irrfan Khan Irrfan karte hain. Jab zinda the tab to qadr ki nahi (Today everyone talks about Irrfan Khan. Nobody paid heed to them when they were alive). Did anyone make a ₹20-25 crore film with him? No!"
Om Puri, Naseeruddin Shah, and Pankaj Kapur are widely regarded as among the most accomplished actors in Hindi cinema history. Through the 80s, they were the face of 'parallel cinema' in India, but were hardly ever considered as leads in commercial films. Similarly, Manoj Bajpayee has also played lead only in small and mid-budget films like Shool, Gangs of Wasseypur, and Bhaiyaji. All his appearances in big-budget entertainers have been in supporting roles.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Costao
Nawazuddin Siddiqui was most recently seen in Costao, a biographical crime drama film directed by Sejal Shah. The film, which also stars Priya Bapat, Kishore, Hussain Dalal, and Mahika Sharma, was released on 1 May on ZEE5.
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