Abhay Deol: I was introduced to the drug culture by friends in high school

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Posted by Snehsan

His Dev.D has received an overwhelming response and is also being touted as a trend-setter in Bollywood. But lead hero Abhay Deol isn’t in India to savour its success; he’s in New York doing a workshop in welding and metal work! “But I miss home badly, especially now that the film doing so well. I read whatever I can on the Net every day. Most people don’t know this, but I’m a very ordinary guy, the type who feels shy in a crowd and is overwhelmed by attention,” confesses Abhay. Hailed as the poster boy of smallbudget films, Abhay accepts that his career received only ‘a fair share’ of hype until Dev.D happened. “But things are looking much bigger now. I’m very happy and I need a little time to adjust to this new-found fame,” he says.

Not many know that a modern adaptation of Devdas was Abhay’s idea. “I was looking for a story that dealt with drugs and addiction in an urban setting. When I saw SLB’s Devdas, it occurred to me that it had exactly what I was looking for; all I had to do was set it in the present day. Which was also good because it gave the film a marketing platform, an iconic character, a story and its moments,” explains the actor. And if his portrayal of Dev has been lauded as outstanding, it’s because the actor identifies with most of the film. “It’s a film everyone would understand, most importantly, the youth.

Drugs have always been around; I was introduced to the drug culture by friends in high school. At that age, I was also madly in love with a girl, which I later realised was just an obsession,” admits Abhay. Being a Deol, doesn’t he ever miss the maar-peet and naach-gaana routine? “No, for me the challenge in doing that routine would be to do it better than those who’ve done it before me. And I know I’d fail because, to begin with, I’m not a competitive person. I’m not interested in it either. I’ve worked hard to make a place for myself in the industry, to conform to commercial norms now would be to throw it all away. The audience is also changing now as proven by the kind of films that have worked at the BO in the past couple of years,” observes Abhay. Right now, his focus is on his next film — also his debut production — titled Junction. “All my first five films were with new directors. Even Junction is being directed by debutant Atul Sabarwal, who has also written the script. I like to encourage newcomers, be it directors, actors or writers,” he signs off.