Multi-talented Ash Chandler is excited to be in the City as a part of the theatre performance of ‘The Scent Of A Man’.
“This is my first time as a theatre artist in Bangalore. I am aware that Bangalore has a very active theatre scene,” he says adding, “I have come to the City to perform comedy and sing earlier, and the crowd has been very receptive. Bangalore has a lot of youth and it is very cosmopolitan in nature. People are well exposed to different arts and the City has a very educated audience.”
Ask Ash, who has had a stint with composing, singing, acting in movies and theatre, how the experience is and he says, “Acting in a film is good for money and acting in theatre is apt for one’s own satisfaction.”
Everything for him begins with writing and despite a common belief that his acts are mostly formulated on the spot, Ash says that a lot of hard work goes behind each act.
“Theatre is a tremendous experience and right from the rehearsal to the performance, I have loved each part of it,” he says. Of the different film projects that Ash has done, ask him his favourite and he says, “I’ve portrayed different roles in different movies. Each of my roles have been different ways of finding myself. I played a fashion designer in Shikhar, an autorickshaw driver in ‘Bollywood Bride’, an evil magician in Guzaarish, etc.
And I proudly say that I have enjoyed myself in each of the roles,” says Ash. Ash, who established his presence with his stand-up comedy, says that of all the fields that he has set his foot on, stand-up comedy is the most challenging one.
“In a film, one can always blame the director or the script writer, if it doesn’t fare well. If a musical performance doesn’t come out well, then one can blame it on the microphone or the sound system. But for the stand-up act, the rewards and the blame, both come to the artiste himself,” elaborates Ash.
Since Ash has tasted different forms of art, the changes in the entertainment industry is something he has observed closely.
“In 1999, when I started, most of the music channels had top songs by Alisha, Daler Mehndi or ‘Colonial Cousins’. Most of the entertainment available now is film based though. Everything is mostly about Bollywood or regional films now,” he says.
Ash is fluent in eight languages, a mix of Indian and international ones.
“I think and express best in English. But, I can communicate well in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Konkani, Spanish, French, Italian and German,” he lists out. Ash’s favourite pastime includes long-distance motorcycle rides. “I own six motorcycles and I love having rides on them. I also love cooking. Watching films is something else that I enjoy doing,” he wraps up.
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