Assam-born actor Adil Hussain, whose greatest virtue is his versatility, is hogging all limelight. He has won the top Norwegian film honour equivalent to Oscars for playing the role of a strict Pakistani father in the movie What Will People Say. The Assamese actor plays every role with perfection – whether it is as Sridevi’s indifferent husband in English Vinglish or a mystic in Parched. This actor from Goalpara (Assam) can make anything seem believable.
A report appearing in the The Quint stated that it is a pity that Bollywood doesn’t have much to offer to an actor of Adil Hussain’s calibre. Like the actor says, “Bollywood have underutilised most actors, including Sridevi, who I believe was a volcano of talent. She had the talent to win multiple Oscars.”
The report further stated that for actors like Adil Hussain, the important aspect is to be honest to one’s craft. There is no bigger joy, he says, than knowing that he has been able to “become” a character completely. But in Bollywood, that’s not what works. “Most of what we produce is mediocre unfortunately. Look at Life of Pi, it had no big star and yet look at its numbers.” He says there is no dearth of talent and infrastructure but a lack of intelligent producers and distributors.
But this year has been particularly fruitful for Adil. His Norwegian film What Will People Say has been sent as Norway’s official entry to the Oscars. He was also conferred with their highest national award for his performance. “It was completely unexpected, but I am such a fan of their cinema, particularly for its realism,” he says.
This aside, Adil has a lot to look forward. There’s Love Sonia this year (which is playing in the theatres), but he has also signed a big film with a well-known director the details of which he did not give but promises to be very exciting. There’s also a Netflix series and famous Bengali Director Goutam Ghose’s Hindi directorial venture.