Ashwath Bhatt: Ashwath Bhatt: If you are a true artist, your art must reflect what is going on around you

Ashwath Bhatt speaks about his play Ek Mulaqat Manto Se, being an actor in commercial cinema, and why, while actors are not politicians, being an artist is political

Actor Ashwath Bhatt has been playing the role of Saadat Hasan Manto in the play Ek Mulaqat Manto Se for over a decade, and he believes that we have inhabited the world that the late writer lived in. The relevance, in today’s life and times, is a stark reminder that Manto showed us a world that was equally, if not more, apathetic. “Imagine what Manto would say when he read about Gaza today – about lives being lost, of children dying. Nothing much has changed – in every generation, it seems like he is alive and writing about the world now. Truth is always uncomfortable and that is the reality of the world,” says Ashwath. Ahead of performing the play in the city, the Raazi actor spoke about Manto-yat, its universal appeal, his work and more. Excerpts:

‘Manto’s stories have universal appeal’

as Saadat Hasan Manto in a still from his play.

Ashwath says that reading Manto in the late 90s was a completely different experience for him. “By then I had read Eugene O’Neill and Franz Kafka, among others, but I had never read anything so bold and strong. And I could relate it to what was going on in Kashmir at that time. Kashmir was always in the news – there was violence being reported every other day. I was extremely angry, and I could completely relate to Manto’s stories and writings,” he says. While researching, Ashwath realised that nobody knew much about the perception of Manto and how he saw himself. “And I thought this was an interesting character to play as an actor. Plus, Manto’s stories have a universal appeal,” he adds. The actor explains that there are two parts to the play, set before – pre and post-partition. One is static and the other is moving.

‘We all need to pay our bills and need the work’

Ashwath reiterates the point that most actors in the industry make today, that the audience has evolved and has plenty of good content to choose from. “Producers must realise that you need to give a big screen release some time before you decide to bring it to OTT platforms. If in 20 days, a new film is on OTT, how do you expect people to go to theatres to watch a film?” he asks. The actor says that the audience does not want to compromise on content. “People have been exposed to Turkish, Spanish, Korean, Malayalam, and a variety of content from across the world. Bollywood needs to realise that people’s tastes have changed,” he says, adding, “A friend of mine who was a typical Bollywood masala film lover consumed a variety of content during the pandemic. Today he discusses Stanley Kubrick’s films with me.” Ashwath also feels that good content is a huge struggle in Bollywood. “The corporatisation of the industry, where you have a bunch of business school graduates deciding your script and storyline in 20 minutes, cannot produce great cinema. But we all need to pay our bills and need the work. It’s not that there are no good stories written. But we need passionate producers to back them,” he adds.

Ashwath Bhatt in Ek Mulaqat Manto Se

‘Bollywood is not pure art, it’s a commercial business’

While the Indian film industry is not known to make political statements on global issues, Ashwath feels even if they are not politicians, artists have to be political. “If you are a true artist, your art must reflect what is going on in the world. You cannot be distant. You can’t not be connected to what is going on in your country, in your society, in the world. Whether you are part of the system or not. Whether you have raised your voice or kept silent – everything will be written about. You are part of history,” he opines. Referring to the Iranian cinema and theatre, Ashwath shares, “Censorship is perhaps the toughest in Iran. But they have filmmakers like Jafar Panahi and Mohsen Makhmalbaf, among others, who always find a way to be political through their work without compromising on entertainment or engagement value. That’s what I call a connect, and that is art. But then, Bollywood is not pure art — it is a commercial business.”

On avoiding the jingoistic tropes in commercial cinema

Ashwath Bhatt as Malik in The Diplomat

Ashwath has had a long run in Bollywood, playing crucial roles in films like Raazi, Mission Majnu and Kesari, among others. The actor admits that he was not ready to play the role of Malik, Director General of Pakistan’s ISI, in The Diplomat, immediately after his role in IB71 (where he plays the ISI intelligence chief). “If the director has a vision and clarity, it helps. Shivam Nair (director of The Diplomat) was clear he did not want jingoism, no bashing people from across the border. The film was based on a true story, and the brief was to keep it realistic. Initially, I was not sure and wanted to shy away from this typical trope. I had done a couple of films with similar supporting characters and did not want to go into that zone again. But Shivam convinced me. He gave me the freedom to create the character the way I wanted to, in terms of appearance, mannerisms etc, and I am glad the character stood out,” says Ashwath.