‘Every crime is bailable’

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Deepak Tijori with Vinod Kambli

Yes, the conviction happened two weeks ago. But unfortunately, he will get a bail and will walk around freely in a few days. Which means you can commit the most heinous crime, get convicted and in a few days get bail.
Recently, I met Mr Himanshu Roy, Mumbai’s commissioner of police. We were introduced by Mahesh Bhatt. Mr Roy lauded my guts to fight relentlessly against a crime like that. Even the most senior police officials agree that our system is such that despite being proven guilty, the goons don’t undergo a long-term punishment.
Thankfully, nothing happened to my daughter and she is safe. But that man had a rape case against him, 14 cases of chain snatching and is a regular with threatening girls and molesting them. I mean, he will soon walk around the city again and that time it’ll be another girl as his victim and another father fighting for justice.
I remember walking into a suburban coffee shop a few days ago, and what do I see? The same man relaxing with a bunch of friends at the same cafe. Look at his audacity! He actually threatened me to withdraw the case. A couple of times we were offered to settle the case out of court.
The idea to fight for justice is not to create a noise about it. I want every parent to be alert about the safety of his or her children. Like I said, the conviction has happened but I don’t see it as some sort of closure. Honestly, the battle was always against the system and not just one person.
Tender minds and innocent souls being targeted by such insensitive acts is highly condemned. I acted like any father would if he were in my position. If the system is flawed, only we can fight it. I have always acted upon my beliefs. They may not have always been successful but I’ve managed to hold my head high even in the worst of times.
My journey in the film industry is full of ups and downs. While I’ve enjoyed the ups, it’s the downs that have made me stronger, wiser and more pragmatic. The 90s was the golden phase — I did around 35 films, which isn’t a big number but I’m glad that it earned me the celebrity status that I enjoyed.
It was in early 2000, soon after Vaastav, that I started losing interest in my work. I was fed up of playing the protagonist’s brother or friend. The roles that I was offered were very monotonous. I thought it was better to take a break than succumb to mediocrity.
I wanted to make films. Actually, during the shooting for Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa in 1994, my co-actor Ashutosh Gowarikar and I were brainstorming. I wanted to make a film and he wanted to direct. Mr Bhatt, who is also my mentor, thought it was suicidal to produce a film and have a new director like Ashutosh direct it.
Yes, the film bombed but it did give me the experience and the confidence to establish myself as a filmmaker. Today, I’m looking at re-establishing myself as an actor.
But I’ve realised that the industry and the industry people have changed and how! The actors and filmmakers in the 90s were far more humble in their approach. People like me, Vikram Bhatt, Pooja Bhatt, Raveena Tandon etc. would meet without an agenda. Today, when I look around, meetings and friendships happen for branding purposes. Real people and real equations don’t exist anymore.
It’s been a while since I’ve faced the camera. I want to act and make films. I’m doing a few films but there is a lot more that I have on my mind. But I don’t know how to start. Most of the time when I call my so-called filmmaker friends, requesting them to meet me, there is no courtesy reply. There is no acknowledgment to the text messages either.
When I did manage to speak to a few acquaintances, I was told that they know me and have seen my work. So why meet? My point is every actor looks different at different ages. It’s only after you meet a person can you understand if he or she fits the film you’re making.
I can’t play the teenager I played in my earlier films. At 40 plus I can play strong character based roles. But if you don’t meet, how will you know?
It has become so disheartening. I’m not a newcomer or an unsuccessful actor. I’ve done some big films and have proved myself. Sadly, my attempts to get in touch with the so-called “big” filmmakers were futile.
If you look at Saif Ali Khan’s films in the 90s, he was doing exactly what I did in Aashiqui, Sadak and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar. It’s just that he got lucky and broke the monotony with Dil Chahta Hai.
My decision to take a break backfired, to say the least. What kept me going were the films I was directing. I wanted to make different films that aren’t the typical herd-mentality sort churned out in Bollywood. But big financiers want big actors, and big actors mean big budget. Since that wasn’t working out, I started making small films with small stars.
Some of my films would not take off. Some would be released incomplete as the company went bankrupt. The helplessness and frustration would come periodically but I didn’t crumble.
I have seen success, I have seen people being incredibly fake and I’ve looked in the eyes of a goon and not crumbled. I am a fighter, as always. The good thing through it all is that I’ve managed to keep my close friends and family closer to me than ever. I’d be nowhere without them.