- Veteran Kannada actor Anant Nag will receive the Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2024 for Indian cinema contribution
- Anant Nag expressed gratitude and declined to debate if the award was overdue
- PM Narendra Modi praised Anant Nag in a tweet, which the actor appreciated greatly
Veteran Kannada actor Anant Nag has been named the recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award 2024 for his contribution to Indian cinema.
After the announcement, the actor spoke about how it feels to receive the recognition, PM Modi praising him, and how he chooses roles in an exclusive interview with NDTV.
Was The Award Overdue?
Asked if the award was long overdue, Anant Nag said, "Whether it was overdue or not... it is for them to decide. The award has come, so if I have to say something, I'll say: it has come, thank you very much. I don't want to get into this debate about whether it should have come or when it should have come... I can't decide on that."
"Happy That PM Modi Tweeted About Me"
PM Narendra Modi shared a long post on X (formerly Twitter) praising the veteran star. Reacting to it, Anant Nag said, "I have stopped acting for three years now... the only redeeming thing about it is that Mr Modi, our Prime Minister, tweeted the message... that's a very great thing for me, and I'm very happy about it."
He added, "Whoever has received this award has been rather at the fag end of their careers, or at the end of their careers only. So this means more... because it is happening during the time of Mr Modi."
On Choosing Roles
He said, "I can't name a favourite film (of mine)... I will be doing that at the cost of other films. All the films... the scripts were given to me, I selected those scripts and those roles, and then I performed. My duty as a professional actor is to give my best to all, and that's what I've done."
"There is an author who has written it, there is a dialogue writer, there is a director... I am only at the instance of those so many people... at their behest, I do that role. I have accepted it, and I do it. I have to give my best to every role," he added.
The actor said that he has done most films with Shyam Benegal, adding, "The maximum number of films I have done in Hindi is with Shyam Benegal... I've done six films with him, and all are negative characters. All are negative characters, and that was applauded... by the public, that is the greatest thing."
On Career And The Kannada Film Industry
The Kannada legend shared that he began acting in the theatre. He said, "I started acting from the stage... in the theatre. Thereafter, when I got into films, I developed my own naturalistic style of acting, which I personally liked. And that was accepted by the people, by the producers, and the cine industry as such in all languages."
He added, "In Karnataka... there was an atmosphere of New Wave films, and films made on novels written by ladies, women housewives and such other ladies... those novels were all read by the womenfolk of Karnataka, and when they were made into films, there was a ready-made audience for them."
On The Missing Element In Modern Cinema
The actor also opened up about the missing element in modern cinema and said, "Along with entertainment, one was supposed to give information, education, and enlightenment also. So that enlightenment element is missing... That enlightenment as such, whichever, some kind of enlightenment, is totally missing. I would like that angle to come into cinema."