Abhay Deol says he was 'afraid of fame'

Someone who has navigated seamlessly between parallel and mainstream cinema, choosing scripts that scandalised his colleagues in the industry, Abhay Deol insisted that taking a risk is his formula and playing safe is not part of who he is.

The actor talked about films like ‘Dev D’ and ‘Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!’ that made him a darling of independent film followers.

“These were directed by those boasting a different cinematic language and story treatment. I have always believed in good work and the fact that people are ready to embrace the new. I am glad I was part of that movement where I worked with several debut directors or those who had just started their careers,” said the actor who debuted with ‘Socha Na Tha’ (2005).

Surprisingly, he came in very late for the publicity of the above-mentioned films. “Believe it or not, I was afraid of fame. Of course, now that I look back, I feel like I missed out on a lot of hype. Frankly, I found self-publicity very cheap. Looking back, I feel I could have handled it better and embraced what was coming my way.”

Someone who started watching ‘World Cinema’ at an early age with filmmaker Stanley Kubrick being his favourite director (‘his disgust for war’ and making tragic-comedies fascinated me’), Deol, who was recently seen in the web series ‘Trial by Fire’ admitted that the Hindi films being made during his growing-up years were all about escaping reality. “And I didn’t want to escape reality but embrace it,” he smiled.

Now that he has spent nearly two decades in the industry, the actor told a leading media house, “It feels like the time has gone by really fast. I look back with curiosity.”