Priyadarshan Responds to Paresh Rawal’s ‘Hera Pheri Role Choked My Career’ Remark
Director says the actor eagerly accepted the Baburao role and promised to give it his “heart and soul”
Mumbai: Filmmaker Priyadarshan has reacted to actor Paresh Rawal previously saying that his iconic role in Hera Pheri limited the kind of characters he was later offered.
The 2000 comedy, featuring Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Tabu, remains one of Bollywood’s most popular cult films. Rawal’s portrayal of Baburao Ganpatrao Apte became a cultural phenomenon and is widely regarded as one of the most memorable comic performances in Hindi cinema.
Speaking in a recent interview, Priyadarshan recalled that Rawal had enthusiastically accepted the role when it was first offered to him. The director said he had explained the importance of the character and told the actor that Baburao would be the central figure of the story, while the other two characters would support the narrative.
According to Priyadarshan, Rawal agreed immediately and assured him that he would dedicate himself fully to the part. At the time, the actor was largely known for playing antagonistic roles, making the comic character a significant shift in his career.
However, Rawal has earlier admitted that the popularity of Baburao led to him being repeatedly offered similar comic roles. In a past interview, he described the character as a “noose around his neck,” saying he felt trapped by the image and sought different opportunities to break away from the stereotype.
The actor had once approached filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj in hopes of getting a contrasting role that would help him shed the comic persona associated with Baburao.
Meanwhile, Priyadarshan also shared an update about the much-awaited sequel, Hera Pheri 3. He said the project has not moved forward yet due to ongoing legal complications and will only begin once those issues are resolved.
The director further reflected on his approach to remakes, noting that he never tries to replicate the original films exactly. Instead, he adapts the core idea to suit the sensibilities of the audience for whom the remake is intended. He also suggested that the era of remakes may be fading, as viewers today have easy access to original films in their authentic form.
