Neeraj Kabi

“The audience basically likes complex characters, and bringing out the complexities is the actor's job. The audience doesn't have the script, the actor does.”

“If I get a call from Imtiaz Ali or Zoya Akhtar to star in their films, I won't think twice.”

“I do work on stage as an actor. I do films as well. Television, I haven't done much.”

“The struggle is to sustain the quality. When I look at my work and the kind of responses I'm blessed with, I feel I need to do so much more.”

“Adopting mannerisms is called mimicry. That is not a good way to do things. You don't start to imitate somebody, the way he walks and talks, that is a very irrelevant element of acting.”

“I like characters that are complex. I don't like people who are simple to play and are either black or white.”

“In all these years of doing theatre, I've been a very physical performer - physically demonstrative, yet sticking to the realism of the piece.”

“I only like playing people who are completely different from me. I try to mould myself into that character.”

“Relationships have become like pizza and coke, which might look fancy but has nothing good to offer.”

“I do not like to label the characters I am doing or even myself as a particular type of actor. I try to do different kind of roles which are not the same 'hero' or 'villain' kind.”

“I didn't want to get into any Amazon Prime Video show just like that. I was waiting for a big series to come where the script is good, the role is good and where there's great talent.”

“Empathy is much bigger than sympathy. When the character is empathised with, that means you have succeeded as an actor. So even if it's a villain, the audiences don't hate you... they understand why you have turned into a villain.”

“I don't discuss my journey in the Hindi film industry since it is something personal to me.”

“Actually, I came to Mumbai from Jamshedpur in 1991 to become an actor. I began searching for work and I was all alone and absolutely empty-handed, no craft and nobody that I knew.”

“There's a lot of opportunity on the web that you couldn't imagine some years ago. People are experimenting at a fast rate.”

“I remember watching 'The Lunchbox' that released around the same time 'Ship Of Theseus'. Both films found space in the independent cinema circuit. But at a personal level, 'The Lunchbox' is one of the favourite films.”

“But I'm very keen to work with directors such as Imtiaz Ali, Zoya Akhtar, Farhan Akhtar, Vishal Bhardwaj, Abhishek Chaubey, Anurag Kashyap and Abhishek Kapoor.”

“Money is very important to me, but its source is important too. As of now, I can say that I will never ever do films that demands me to sell my craft.”

“I don't know if I can call myself the poster boy. But yes, I am fortunate that a lot of work that I did was on the web. It has definitely got me some really good roles and a great audience.”

“If the way I've performed a scene isn't to the director's liking, I discuss it, try to understand why he doesn't like it, and incorporate the suggestions. But sometimes I also take a very strong stand.”