Actor Himansh Kohli of ‘Yaariyaan’ fame says it is important to have a mentor in the movie business as it makes the process of approaching filmmakers easy. The actor believes a mentor’s job is not only to guide an artiste but also be an honest critic.
Himansh says, “In Bollywood, you definitely need a mentor who is from the industry. Then it becomes easy for you to approach a lot of producers and directors. If you have talent, people will notice that and appreciate you, but you do need someone who will at least talk for you. That mentor needs to be your critic also. He should be honest enough to tell you if you are good or not as an actor.”
With his latest, ‘Ranchi Diaries’, Himansh says he has found a mentor in Anupam Kher, who has also produced the film.
“Getting a mentor like him (Kher) was a dream come true. He has produced the film. A lot of people come here to join his acting school and now they are producing the film in which I am the hero. I feel extremely fortunate and proud to be part of this film.’’
Directed by Sattwik Mohanty, the upcoming film tells the story of a young aspiring actor and her mentor.
The actor says he was initially ‘very intimidated’ by Kher because of his body of work.
“I was always scared when he was around. I’ve seen him in serious characters since I was a child. His experience in cinema, with 500 films, can be intimidating. Even if we do one film a year, it will take us five births to achieve what he has in one lifetime.’’
Himansha adds that with Kher as a mentor, he started to explore his acting talent.
“He (Kher) used to tell me about how there should be a synchronisation between dialogue pitch and emotions. There is so much that I have learnt from him. He is a teacher who can get the best out of students,’’ says Himansh.
While his experience of shooting with Kher has been ‘life changing’, Himansh recalls an incident when their crew faced a tough time during a schedule in the Naxal affected area near Ranchi.
“During the shoot, Naxals warned us that they will not let us shoot in the area. It was scary and we were really tensed because we were shooting at locations which they didn’t want us to. But the government supported us. We had nearly 200 CRPF jawans guarding us for the shoot,’’ he says.
“I have never witnessed something like this as an actor. It was an extremely challenging and risky thing to do. But it all went smoothly and I will never forget this experience,” he adds.
The film is scheduled to release on October 5.