Dinesh Kamath's column "‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’ beats ‘The Accidental Prime Minister’"

‘Uri: The Surgical Strike’ beats ‘The Accidental Prime Minister’

By Dinesh Kamath

Veteran actor Anupam Kher says that it is important for public personalities to have a sense of responsibility. Anupam treated his fans with a Q&A session on Twitter, where a user asked him if public figures (actors and sportspersons) are role models. Should they always be held to the highest degree of moral and ethical standards or given a more lenient treatment as they are also imperfect like anyone else? "It is very important for public figures to have a sense of responsibility," he replied.

Talking about his favourite scene from the 1995 film "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge", he said: "My scene with Shah Rukh Khan about celebrating failure."

Kher’s fans are disappointed about the fact that "Uri: The Surgical Strike" overshadowed his film "The Accidental Prime Minister". But Anupam Kher said that he was happy.

Asked what made him take up the medical series "New Amsterdam", he replied: "Challenge of acting in an English language series. I think in Hindi. Also 'New Amsterdam' is an amazing series to be part of." Talking about what film's failure bugged him the most, he said after the 1991 film "Lamhe" did not do well at the box office when it was released, he was disappointed. "But now it is considered to be a cult classic. Maybe it came before its time," he added.

What's next for Anupam?

"I have a Hindi film called 'One Day' directed by Ashok Nanda. It is coming up sometime in May. It is a thriller," he shared.

Aditya Dhar's Uri: The Surgical Strike, featuring Vicky Kaushal and Yami Gautam, continues to dominate the box office even as it enters its fifth week. The war drama crossed the Rs 200-crore milestone on Thursday. Vijay Ratnakar Gutte's The Accidental Prime Minister, which released the same week, was beaten hollow at the ticket windows. The film, which was based on Sanjaya Baru's book of the same name, claimed that then-Congress president Sonia Gandhi controlled the workings of the PMO with an iron fist during Dr Manmohan Singh's two-term tenure as prime minister. Anupam Kher, who played former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh in The Accidental Prime Minister, revealed during an 'Ask Me Anything' session on Twitter that he was "happy" that Uri: The Surgical Strike overshadowed his film at the box office.

The Accidental Prime Minister was unanimously panned by critics for its performances and weak storytelling. In an interview with IANS, Anupam had lashed out at critics who wrote unfavourably about his performance. "No matter what you do, there will be people trying to pull you down. Criticism was always a favourite national pastime. Now film criticism has also become a big source of self-entertainment for Indians," he had said.

Anupam had also dismissed the criticism of his performance as "political agenda". "It seems some critics have a much larger political agenda than what I am supposed to have. The comments are uncalled for and irrelevant," he had said.

I will continue with Anupam Kher tomorrow.