Tollywood even pays on time: Paresh Rawal

Soon to be in the city to perform in the play Dear Father, actor and Member of Parliament Paresh Rawal is quite excited to be coming back. “I don’t have friends here, but I have visited Hyderabad several times, mostly for shooting. It’s a beautiful city — very progressive and has a very liberal atmosphere,” he says.

The play, adapted from Marathi into Hindi and Gujarati, is an emotional thriller with a tinge of humour and revolves around four principal characters. He adds, “The story is a mystery revolving around an inspector, father, son and a daughter-in-law. The play examines the relationships between parents, wives and, also, society in general.”

Paresh thinks the audience in Hyderabad is very sharp. “The audience is well-informed and has a very liberal outlook towards art. My experience with the audience has always been wonderful here.”

He also has good words for the southern film industry. “The industry here is very well organised and disciplined. Everyone’s always on time, including the lead actors of the movie. The work always finishes on time and they even pay you on time,” he jokes. On a more serious note he adds, “Above all, I think they are constantly innovating, which is amazing.”

Also seen in the Pawan Kalyan starrer Theenmar, Paresh adds that he is open to working in Telugu movies.

It’s been a long journey for the veteran actor. “It’s been fruitful, eventful and I’m satisfied.” But as an actor he feels he still has a lot more to accomplish.

He says, “Like every actor, there are so many roles I still haven’t portrayed.” Ask what his dream role would be and he says, “Any role written well is a dream role.”

After venturing into production with the 2012 hit Oh My God, he will be turning producer again with a biopic on Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he is planning. He says, “Well, the movie is definitely happening. But, it will be sometime in June or July. There is time before the project begins to take a more concrete shape.”

Also releasing this year will be the third edition of the hit franchise Hera Pheri, co-starring John Abraham and Suniel Shetty. “The first schedule of the movie is complete. We are on a break now and shooting will resume sometime around March,” he informs.