Faisal Malik calls Anurag Kashyap ‘Imaandaar' and ‘Tedha': 'Woh satak jaate hai...'
Faisal Malik shot to fame in 2020 after 'Panchayat', an Indian series that quietly became a pandemic favorite. Instead, it highlighted the real challenges villagers face and the process of enacting government programs.
Malik feels that trailblazers like
Ram Gopal Varma
and
Anurag Kashyap
proved that acting success isn't about fitting a stereotypical look.
Ram Gopal Varma's influence
Talking to Siddharth Kannan, Faisal shared, 'I think it is Ram Gopal Varma who made us believe that we don't have to have an attractive physique to be an actor. The era 2003-2004 was all about 'acting aaye na aaye body hona chahiye' (You need to look fit to be an actor).'
Visiting Ram Gopal Varma's office
The actor never had the opportunity to work directly with Ram Gopal Varma, but he remembers visiting Varma's office, Factory, on a whim.
He said, 'I visited his office, Factory, once. They, however, didn't let me meet him. So, I returned from there. I often used to visit that area. There used to be a bread pakoda stall outside Factory. People used to stand in huge queues there because they believed that hanging out there might increase their chances of being picked by Ram Gopal Varma.
Everybody knew he only picked average looking people for his movies.'
Anurag Kashyap's continuation of the legacy
Faisal pointed out that Anurag Kashyap carried forward the belief popularised by Ram. He said, 'After Ram Gopal Varma, it is Anurag Kashyap who took this forward of working with average looking people. There was a time when people used to fear that if you don't look a certain way, you cannot be an actor. But, that has changed. Now, you see there are many great actors out there who may not have good looks or attractive physique.
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