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EXCLUSIVE: Special Ops star Kay Kay Menon: Earlier all the good stuff would get pushed down, now it's balanced
In an exclusive chat with Pinkvilla, Kay Kay Menon opened up on how exciting was it to play Himmat Singh in Special Ops and his association with Neeraj Pandey. He also shared his thoughts about cinema today and more.
This quarantine period if there is one show everyone has been raving about, is Neeraj Pandey's Special Ops which went live on Hotstar Specials in March. The show stars Kay Kay Menon, Karan Tacker, Muzamil Ibrahim among others in pivotal roles and had been co-written and directed by Baby director Neeraj Pandey. In an exclusive chat with Pinkvilla, Kay Kay Menon opened up on how exciting was it to play Himmat Singh and his association with Neeraj. He also shared his thoughts about cinema today and more.
1. How was the experience shooting for Special Ops, working with Neeraj Pandey and more?
It was great. In fact, Neeraj Pandey, Shital Bhatia (co-producer) and I go a long way back, some seventeen years ever since Television. His writing has always been outstanding. It is brilliant in Special Ops. He has a special knack of writing screenplay and using wit in serious situations, so all that comes to use as an actor. For me, I had to enable the script by performing well whatever was there in the script.
2. What was the most interesting part about playing Himmat Singh?
What was interesting was to flesh out Himmat Singh as a person. The way he conducts his lines. What happens is when you do such roles you realize that people who are in IB or similar departments, their life is difficult because 24 hours and 365 days of the years, they have to be alert. Secondly, they get criticize for little things, forgetting that these are the same people who saved lives so many times. They have a domestic life themselves. So, to play all these aspects, it was a very wholesome and interesting to me.
3. Do you think this is an exciting time for actors since the audience has become more receptive to good content?
I don't look at the time to find me something exciting, I try to look for excitement myself. I don't wait for the environment to get something exciting for me. It is called self-motivation. Acting is my passion and it keeps me interested. But yes, content is being appreciated now. So all the hard work people like us put in the industry, is being resurrected by other generations. So, we feel happy about it.
4. While we talk about good cinema, there is also a section of the masala kinds which are gaining big?
I don't have issues with all kinds of cinema co-existing. What used to happen earlier was all the good things would be pushed down, now that is not the case. Now, it is balanced. I won't be too overjoyed. I want this to remain constant.
5. What do you take into consideration while picking up a project given that a plethora of work is available now?
I think you have to be open to doing all kinds of work and roles. If you narrow minded and think I want to do only action movies then it becomes a problem. An actor by definition must be available to do everything. I take pride in saying that I think I can very well do anything other than deducing my height (laughs). So, if the story interests me, the way it has been envisioned interests me, the writing, then I am on. It is not about any genre, it is about the effort put in by writers and directors on a story.
6. How do you say NO to good money if the script is not creative enough?
It depends on what at the time your priority is. If you have to pay some loans, you might just say yes. Once in a while, I have done that but with a hope that the script might turn out decent. But there is no guarantee, but everything you pick up is on faith. You put faith in the script and director. It is possible that the most interesting script might not turn out well. So you have to just work on your skills. So, you can't think about it. You go with good intentions, I think it is fine. It might not be successful every time but you need to be consistent with your intentions.
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