Bollywood actor Pankaj Tripathi made his debut in Bollywood 20 years ago. He appeared in the 2005 crime-action film ‘Apaharan’. In the beginning, he played small roles for many years.
Recently, Pankaj Tripathi revealed that in the early days he used to work only for money, but now he feels he is at a stage where he can say no.
In an interview, Pankaj Tripathi said:
“I am learning to say no. Every person should know their limits. After that, I simply say politely, ‘Thank you, friend, this is where my limit ends.’ I have worked 16–18 hour days and used to say, ‘Now the actor is gone; only the laborer is left.’ But now I calmly say no and tell them that I have fulfilled my responsibility for the day.”
He further added:
“The story should be something that excites me.”
Now I don’t want to do projects just for money, because I’ve moved beyond that phase. I shouldn’t find myself counting the days on set. Not long ago, that actually happened—I thought, ‘Did I make so many sacrifices, struggle so much, only to now stand on set counting the remaining days?’ That’s very wrong.”
He shared that during this break, he continued doing brand endorsements and also shot some patchwork for Anurag Basu’s upcoming Metro… In Dino. He said:
“Anurag Da’s films aren’t completed that easily. After editing, if he feels a scene needs to be done again, I did that.”
Pankaj Tripathi said he turned down producers by telling them he didn’t have time for new projects. He explained:
“In reality, I had a lot of time. I was giving that time to myself. I used to fold my hands and tell the media not to invite me anywhere. When a new project comes up, I’ll talk about it then.”
He further shared that now he is listening to new stories and will also be working on the next parts of the franchises he’s part of.
In the end, Pankaj Tripathi revealed that he will be seen in Mirzapur: The Film and in the fourth season of the gangster series Mirzapur. He will also be working in the third part of Amar Kaushik’s horror comedy Stree, which was announced after the success of Stree 2 last year.