Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 15 : It's not often that a son opens up about a secret that shaped one of Indian cinema's most respected actors. When Parikshit Sahni recently spoke about his "dad" Balraj Sahni, it truly felt like a son remembering his father, a man who quietly changed the way actors performed in Indian cinema.
Born on May 1, 1913, in Rawalpindi, Balraj Sahni was one of the most respected names in Hindi cinema. His performances in 'Do Bigha Zameen', 'Kabuliwala', 'Waqt', and 'Garm Hava' still strike a chord because of how real they felt. He is remembered as an icon to this day because he didn't just act, he simply became the person he was playing.
But according to Parikshit, his father's natural acting wasn't just instinct; it came from a unique "secret" that only he knew.
Speaking to ANI, the veteran actor recalled how, in an era when dialogues in Hindi films were often "stilted", Balraj Sahni found his own way to make them sound real.
"You see, he had a secret that nobody knew about except me. The dialogues in Hindi films were very stilted. Do you remember those days? He used to take the dialogues, rewrite them in Punjabi in Gurmukhi, and then rehearse them in Gurmukhi. After that, he would speak to them in Hindi as naturally as he could. And that's why everybody said that he didn't use the bombastic style that was very prevalent at that time," the actor told ANI.
Parikshit also revealed the best piece of advice from his father that he still carries with him today.
"He said, 'Don't act. But believe.' His greatest belief, his greatest strength, was that he didn't act, he believed. People always watched him and said that he was a very natural actor. He looked so natural on the screen because he didn't act. He said, 'Believe in what you're doing.' And that was the best tip I ever got," Parikshit shared.
Balraj Sahni passed away on April 13, 1973, at the age of 59.
Speaking about his son, Parikshit, who followed in his father's footsteps, chose exciting and challenging roles throughout his own film career. Parikshit first worked with Raj Kapoor as an assistant on the film 'Mera Naam Joker.' The actor starred in Rajkumar Hirani's blockbuster films 'Lage Raho Munna Bhai,' '3 Idiots,' and 'PK,' and also appeared in Hirani's 2023 film 'Donkey.'
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