Sunny Deol On Being Seen As The Ultimate Action Hero: ‘I Don’t Feel My Age, I Just Like To Enjoy My Work’ (EXCLUSIVE)

For over four decades now, Sunny Deol is best known for his explosive action persona and powerful dialogue delivery. He won National Film Awards for his legendary performance as a boxer in “Ghayal” (1990) and for his unmatched portrayal of a fierce, alcoholic lawyer in “Damini” (1993). He delivered one of Indian cinema’s biggest historical hits with “Gadar: Ek Prem Katha” (2001), successfully following it up with “Gadar 2” and “Border 2.” On the release of “Batwara 1947,” the reticent superstar opens up on what it means to revisit the wounds of India’s Partition.

Share a bit about your character in ‘Batwara 1947’ and how you prepared for the role.
My character, Sikandar Mirza, had to look authentic, not some larger-than-life superhero. It was a film very close to my heart, and we wanted to do this for many years. It’s been there forever in Rajkumar Santoshi’s mind. 

Do you think rehearsals help? 
No, I’m not the rehearsal type. I don’t rehearse, I can’t mug lines. I can’t read out my lines. I can’t do any of those things. The character has to grow. Those are not just dialogues. That is the character’s thought at that moment. I don’t use glycerine [for inducing tears] and I don’t do any of those things that actors do to look more effective. I want to feel the emotions. The only time I use it is when there are many retakes. Then I cannot emote anymore because I’ve lost the spontaneity.
 
You have worked with Raj Kumar Santoshi on some of your best works in the past. ‘Ghatak’ and ‘Ghayal’ come to mind immediately. ‘Damini,’ of course. So how do you think he has evolved as a director?
He’s always been a director who has always had great subjects and great ideas. And he’s written them so well in all his films. And he always likes to bring in something new rather than do what he’s done before. And I think he’s got a treasure chest of stories out there. And he brings them out in the most cinematic way. So I think he has grown. 

You shot for the first time with Shabana Azmi in this film. You have never shared the space with her before. What was it like? 
It was very comfortable. Not once did I feel that we had not worked together before. And I always had great respect for her. She was laughing and saying that she shot with Dharamji in one of his last films, “Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani.” And now, she has shot with me. She wants to work with my brother Bobby next.
 

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Have you thought of doing a film where you would play Dharamji? 
I don’t think anybody can play Papa. And I don’t want to talk much about my dad. 

You’ve done two important films on Partition: ‘Gadar’ and now, ‘Batwara 1947.’ What do you have to say about your two characters in these films: Tara Singh and Sikandar Mirza? How differently did you approach these two characters? 
I always work as an actor who doesn’t read the story. I listen to it. And when I listen to the story, it starts evolving inside me. And then, I just like to be that thing, and I like to enjoy it. Those mannerisms start coming automatically without me putting any effort into it. That’s the way I have always worked. That’s what I feel cinema is, for me. Tara Singh and Sikandar Mirza are characters who were so happy the way they were. And they didn’t know how life was going to change them. They stand out because they stand up and they hold up their heads with courage; even if they have to lose their lives, they don’t stop. So, I think that is one similarity between them. Obviously, “Gadar” was more of a romantic film. And it was a much younger character: a truck driver who falls in love with someone princess-like. The only commonality is the Partition. That’s all. Otherwise, they were two very different characters. 
 

People still expect you to fight like no other hero. They see you as the ultimate action hero. Do you see that as a responsibility? 
I’ve been doing this thing since I took up cinema. Right from the start to this day. I am blessed. God has given me such [good] genes, I don’t feel my age. I just like to enjoy my work.

Your next, ‘Gabru,’ looks like a very relatable middle-class story? 
It is about people who come to the city from small towns with dreams in their eyes. All of a sudden they’re 30, 40, and 50. They lose their dreams.

Are you choosing well?
I just keep my fingers crossed because until the film is released, we don’t know anything.