Shatrughan Sinha recalled his cinematic journey to Aaj Tak’s Shweta Singh.
According to Shatrughan Sinha, he used to steal away the limelight from the heroes in the films he played the villain in.
Veteran Bollywood star Shatrughan Sinha recently opened up about his early days in cinema, his struggle, his co-actors Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra and more. He was speaking at the Sahitya Aaj Tak 2024 fair, where he was the special guest. One of the biggest fairs of Indian languages, literature, art and entertainment, the Sahitya Aaj Tak 2024 was held in Kolkata on February 17 and 18. Shatrughan Sinha recalled his cinematic journey to Aaj Tak’s Shweta Singh.
He began by talking about his transition from being an onscreen villain to a hero. According to Shatrughan Sinha, he used to steal away the limelight from the heroes in the films he played the villain. He said the heroes were insecure about him as he would get better dialogues and better entries. Dissatisfied with the fact that he was earning more name and fame than them, he said that many top leading men refused to work with him. According to him, they were the ones who started spreading the rumour that the actor came late on sets, an attribute that has been a part of his legacy for years. Shatrughan Sinha said he stopped getting work as a villain so he turned hero in the movies.
While he says that he struggled in his early career days, he admits he did not have to struggle as much as Amitabh Bachchan or Dharmendra. “I have heard that Dharmendra had to reel boxes to producers and studios himself. Amitabh Bachchan has said that he had to sleep on benches. Their struggles are different from mine. I have seen my career ending in front of me, stumble and then restart.”
Talking about how there is hardly anyone from his home state of Bihar who attained superstardom, he praised Manoj Bajpayee and the late actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who he believes would have become a star if he was alive today. He also lamented the fact that many budding actors in the industry do not want to admit that they hail from Bihar.
