'I learnt Hindi the hard way'

Sachin Khedekar, who played the role of Home Minister Shivshanakar in the recently released film Shadow, has been popular both on small and big screens for decades. He started his career with the serial Imtihaan and then graduated to silver screen with Astitva, where he delivered an excellent performance portraying a character with grey shades. Sachin loves theatre and has been acting in Marathi and Hindi theatre since childhood. So when he shoots for films, there are hardly any retakes.
Born at Ville Parle in Mumbai, Sachin joined the theatre group of actor-director Vinay Apte. The evergreen actor is now busy shooting for Rokkk being produced under the banner of Ikon Films.

Excerpts from an interview:

Your role in ‘Rokkk’?
I am playing the role of Ravi Malhotra, a simple straightforward youth. Anushka (Tanushree Dutta) is my wife and Nishi (Preeti Sharma) is my sister. Udita Goswami is playing the role of my sister-in-law and Shaad Randhawa is her boyfriend.

What is special about this film?
I can't give you the details. As this is a horror and suspense thriller, nothing should be divulged ahead of the release. All I can say is that Tanushree’s character feels something strange has been happening ever since the couple moved to a new house, despite many rituals performed by exorcists before shifting.

Have you ever experienced anything similar in reality?
No, I don’t believe in superstitions. But once, we had a strange experience on the sets. Everything was arranged for the shoot and the day before the shoot, the director and producer left after ensuring that everything was properly locked. But when we arrived on the day of the shoot, everything was dispersed. Some say it was due to the scene shot to exorcise the ghost.

Director Rajesh Ransinghe belongs to the small screen. Were you associated with him from there?
We had known each other for years but hadn’t got a chance to work together. This film gave us that chance.

What is your attitude towards acting?
I don’t think acting comes by birth. Acting improves with practice. The more you work, the more you learn. I am a Marathi and I learnt Hindi the hard way and I am still learning. I read Hindi newspapers loudly so that I can deliver my dialogues effectively.

Which is closer to your heart — small screen or silver screen?
I started with the small screen and earned my recognition from there. Now I am working more for the silver screen. The difference I feel is that one looks smaller on TV and big on cinema screen. People forget you once the serial becomes old while they remember cinema personalities for long.

How do you bring variations to your roles?
I have always wanted to do roles with a difference. If I feel they have become similar, I move to theatre where a new Sachin grows with a new energy.
    For example, my upcoming film is Ek Thi Raani, which is based on the life of Vijaya Raje Scindhia and I am playing the role of Sardar Angre. I am also working on Mani Ratnam’s Raavan, in which I play the role of a government officer.