Ask Anupam
Anupam Kher on Acting

Can acting really be taught? Can acting be treated like any other subject? Can a little boy or girl or a young man or woman be sent to an institution where they can learn acting? Can one decide that he wants to make acting a career, like say he wants to be an engineer, a doctor, a priest or even a plumber? Can we have teachers who can really teach acting, teach others how to express various human emotions? Can all these acting pundits and professors (who gives them the right to call themselves professors of acting, make actors and actress out of ordinary men and women?) These are just some of the questions I have asked myself whenever I have thought of acting, acting schools, acting teachers and all those acting students who flock to their institution to learn acting.

This time I decided to ask some of the known actors and directors if acting could be taught. They have their own reaction. You form your own opinion, and you be the judges.

DILIP KUMAR
We never had and never heard of acting being taught in our times. I strongly feel that acting is living some other life, living some one else’s life, some on who is not even real. So acting means forgetting that you are not Dilip Kumar but that character you are supposed to play. I have died so many times in my early films. I was fully alive but I had to give the audience the feeling that I was dead. The way you live or die as the character written for you is what acting is all about. Those feelings have to come from within, from the soul. You have to forget yourself fully and create a new character with your own art of acting which is something one is born with. I don’t think you can teach acting. Yes, you can learn how to face the camera and sing and dance but the basic human emotions have to come from within. I have always drawn feelings from within me. I learn from myself, from the many selves within me. It is God’s gift. No, I don’t think that acting can be taught, seriously not.

DEV ANAND
Acting has to come spontaneously. You can not learn acting from books and teachers. Yes, they have teachers who teach acting but I don’t think acting can be basically taught. You can learn some basics. You can polish whatever is there within you but you have to be an actor within. Not all actors can be the same. Teaching acting has the danger of creating robots and clones but can not make you actors. An actor is born, yes it is a privilege very few are blessed with. Believe me, an actor is born, he can not be made or moulded it.

MANOJ KUMAR
Did Dilip Kumar or Raj Kapoor or Dev Anand or the great naturals like Motilal and Manoj Kumar go to acting schools? And how many students learn acting at all those acting school from teachers who have themselves failed in acting have really made it really actors. Just a handful the rest and the best are born. They can never be made.

SUBHASH GHAI
I am a product of the FTII but basically I am a born actor. I can say that I learn more from watching Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and other stalwarts at work than what I learned at the FTII.

RISHI KAPOOR
Teaching of acting is a fraud. Acting is a gift of God is not for every one. We, the Kapoors, are lucky. We belong to the category of the best actors. We are actors, will always be actors because we are born to be actors.

M. VYAS, VADODARA
I am facing a delicate dilemma. I want to join the acting school as soon as possible? The choice is between John Barry’s Acting School and your acting academy which you are planning. I would prefer joining your institute because you will be there to guide me and I am your fan?

I would be very happy to accept you as a student. Barry John, is also one of the best teachers of acting in the country. If all goes well, Barry John may join hands with me. So please don’t be in a hurry. Give us some time. I will let you know all the details soon.

VIJAY KUMAR S. NTEEN, DHARWAD
I have written 40 songs and 2 different stories to be made into films can you give me a chance?

First of all this is a column only for struggling actors. But since you have taken the trouble to write to me let me tell you that the competition among the writers and lyricist is very tough. Any one who can write any thing (aati kya Khandala and chalti kya nau se barah) he can be a writer ora lyricist today. But only the very good and more importantly, only the lucky can succeed. If you are prepared for the struggle there is scope, but remember the struggle is very tough and I repeat very tough.

NAILA, NORWAY
Aamir Khan is the best actor according to me. Why dosen’t he win any awards?

Yes, I agree with you. Aamir is the best actor among the younger lot but Aamir is also a man of strong and strange principles. He had decided not to accept any award because be believes that no awards are genuine. They are all fake, manipulated and manoeuvred. He had some bad experiences in the past. He doesn’t want a repeat performance. That’s his valuable opinion. And no one can do anything about it. This Khan has proved that he is a Khan who can’t change his opinion.

ISMAIL D., NAGPUR
What do you think of the calibre of the younger actors of today?

They are good but they can be much better if they take acting seriously. The problem is that they have too many temptations and they fall for them, mostly for money. There is big money forthe young stars today. There is money in the ads they do, the shows they do, some entertainment programmes and shamefully some of them even go to the extent of demanding money to attend weddings, name- keeping ceremonies, inaugurate jewellery shops, attend birthday parties of unknown people who have the money. Any thing for money seems to be their only goal. Money is more valuable than acting. That’s why acting has taken a back seat. And if things continue acting will soon turn into one big `tamasha’.

MOLLY REGO, GOA
They say it is very essential for an actress for an expose if she has to succeed, What do you have to say?

It depends entirely on the actress. They may say any thing. They may ask girls to expose or do any bold scenes, bedroom scenes, kissing scenes or even a nude scenes but it is entirely the girl’s decision. She can turn down the offer for whatever it is worth. Or she may fall for it. No one can force a girl to do anything if she doesn’t want to do it. We are still not living in a jungle.

SUSAN D’SOUZA, MUMBAI
Why do we have just six or seven top male stars and female stars?

We make the largest number of films. We have the largest population. Then why this problem?

Unfortunately the way of the world of films is way away from the world. These six or seven stars sell and selling is all that matters. No filmmaker is willing to risk his neck to give a break to newcomers. Those who have paid a very high price. Who would dare to take a risk. So, till things change these stars will rule the world and they know it.