“I have been hearing that theatre is dying since I was in college. I was told that time too… that theatre was dying and had no future, but as long as people feel the need to reach out to each other, theatre will never die,” said Naseeruddin Shah at YASHADA in Pune on Saturday. He was speaking at the 10th edition of the Pune International Literary Festival.
Speaking at an event titled ‘Understanding Histrionics’, Shah spoke about theatre and the essence of dramatics. He addressed various topics, such as his preparation before performing, how he chooses his roles, techniques of voice modulation, and the future of OTT platforms, among others.
He asserted that an actor’s role is to deliver the goods and communicate what the writers and directors intended, not to flaunt how many voices, expressions, or dance steps he can perform.
“According to me, there is no difference between acting in front of the camera and acting in front of the audience. When you are on stage, you have to make contact with the audience, and you must establish eye contact with the camera when being filmed because, in the end, the camera is the crowd’s collective eye,” said Shah.
“Whether it is an art film or commercial film, for me it is just another opportunity to act… People now have access to a wide range of high-quality content thanks to the Internet, and it’s possible that this is why the Indian public is drifting away from traditional Bollywood masala films today.”
The event was moderated by senior film director Pradeep Dixit.
