Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu:

On screen, Prem Chopra is cruel, nasty and evil; off-screen, he is a different protagonist. “There is nothing to be scared of me, I am a nice person off-screen,” says Prem Chopra reassuring. Chopra is in town for a brief holiday and we caught him up at Hyatt. With more than four decades in the Indian cinema, his enthusiasm to work is inspirational. “In show business, there is no retiring phase. Until the physical conditions allow, I will keep working and enjoy it,” he shares. A two-time national award winner and Film Fair awardee for the movie ‘Upkar’, Chopra believes, “Those cinemas are good and successful which commercially run well. Movies with a good subject line and impeccable screenplay always perform better.”

Forty years in commercial movies. What about parallel cinemas? “These are bogus. I know only one cinema — no parallel cinema, no mainstream. I would certainly love to do some movies, which have artistic essence, beauty and gloom of life. That too without tagging it as commercial or parallel.” Villains in modern cinema not only cause people to be petrified but also make them laugh and Chopra is not an exception. “It is about variation in roles. Comedy amalgamated in a villain’s character in a movie gives a refreshing and new touch. It’s about innovation and I like it.” Chopra who has been quite famous for his dialogues in some of the movies still loves repeating them: “Prem naam hai mera, Prem Chopra.” In the recent Indian election, a number of Bollywood celebrities were seen in participating in the campaigns. Some won seats in their respective constituents. Did politics ever attract Chopra? “It is a completely different ball game. Those who have stood in the elections and won have certainly done a good job and it is indeed a good initiative but I am content with what I am doing. Politics and elections are not my cup of tea,” he shrugs.