I’d love to do an Indian film: Jimi Mistry (Interview with image)
By Robin Bansal, IANSSaturday, November 14, 2009
NEW DELHI - He played Ramu Gupta, an Indian sex guru in “The Guru” and essays the role of an Indian origin astrophysicist in latest Hollywood release “2012″. Indian origin British actor Jimi Mistry now says he would love to feature in a typical Indian potboiler.
“I’d like to work in an Indian film,” said Jimi. “We tried to work things in the past, but it certainly didn’t happen. I am hoping there is some other opportunity to work (outside Britain and Hollywood). I’d love to do something for sure,” Mistry told IANS in a telephonic interview from London.
Asked if he has been approached by any Indian filmmaker, Jimi said: “I have been in the past, but things just haven’t worked out as yet. But it’ll be great if something works out.”
Born to an Indian father and an Irish mother, the actor said he had visited India.
“I have been to India…I’ve been there two or three times. I visited Delhi and Goa. I was there (India) for filming three years ago. I actually loved it,” he said.
Jimi’s latest film “2012″ is inspired by the idea of a global doomsday coinciding with the end of the Mayan Long Count Calendar’s current cycle on Dec 21, 2012.
“This is an entertaining and old-fashioned disastrous action movie that we all love watching. It is also about the world and the underlining theme - we reap what we sow. We got to take care of our surroundings and our earth,” said Jimi.
Directed by Roland Emmerich, “2012″ has an ensemble cast that includes John Cusack, Amanda Peet, Danny Glover, Thandie Newton, Oliver Platt, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Woody Harrelson.
Explaining his role, Jimi said: “I play an astrophysicist of Indian origin, Satnam Tsurutani, who prophecies through research that the world is actually going to end. It was quite different playing a doomsday prophet for a change.”
Jimi ventured into showbiz with British soap opera “EastEnders” in 1998 and a year later he made his big screen debut with director Damien O’Donnell’s BAFTA-winning film “East Is East”.
His first Hollywood break came with “The Guru” in 2002 and after that he has featured in movies like “The Truth About Love” (2004), “Blood Diamond” (2006) and “RocknRolla” (2008).
Most of his roles have centred on Indian ethnicities.
“I’m a British actor of half-Indian ethnicity and ‘it is my ethnicity’. But I have worked very hard to be respected as an actor first. It’s a tight balancing act of choosing the right thing,” Jimi said.
“I have learnt to do the roles which are worth doing and also fought very hard to be seen and do roles that are necessarily of Indian origin.”
The actor feels the success of “Slumdog Millionaire” has opened floodgates for Indian actors abroad.
“In America, race and colour is very different. I think ‘Slumdog’s…’ success has definitely brought on the agenda of Americans to have the power of India,” he said.
“There are probably going to be more opportunities now for Indian actors in Hollywood than there have been. But the fact is that unless a role is specifically restricted to a country, religion or race, it’s always very difficult for an actor of any ethnicity to be accepted into mainstream,” he added.
Jimi’s forthcoming flicks include “It’s A Wonderful Afterlife”, “Basement”, “Eating Dust” and a sequel to “East Is East” titled “West Is West”.
(Robin Bansal can be contacted at robin.b@ians.in)
