“At 22, performing arts beckoned me through the back door,” says Ananth Mahadevan

The actor reminisces about being a copywriter in a publicity agency, not having any pocket money, and battling demons inside and out

Where were you career-wise?

Ananth Mahadevan at 22 (top), and at 60 (above)

I was a copywriter in a publicity agency headed by VP Sathe, that was the sugar bowl of the film industry. Everyone from Raj Kapoor to Dev Anand to Hrishikesh Mukherjee were our clients. Performing arts beckoned me through the back door!

With Shubha Khote in the play No Sex Please! We’re Indian

What was your bank balance?

I was never given pocket money by my parents, so I didn’t have a bank account. After employment, I experienced the thrill of owning a Saraswat Bank passbook.

Ananth impersonating Nonie, the music compere in the play Yours Mine & Ours

What was your mindset then?

I was battling demons within and outside. I wanted to make it as an actor. I wasn’t conditioned for the rituals of show business. How does one swim with sharks without being eaten? I’m still swimming. The sharks just don’t pay attention anymore.

Ananth in a mythological avatar for a play

Anyromance in life?

My friends used to ogle the girls in the Khalsa College galleries from our Don Bosco School windows. But my father’s disciplinarian conditioning made me look at books.

With Rakesh Bedi in a telefilm directed by Mandira Kashyap

What was your fashion sense like?

Zero. I didn’t strut around in fancy clothes to impress filmmakers.

And your fitness quotient then?

I wasn’t into gymming and preferred walking. I could live off lentils, rice and veggies.

Kishore Kumar’s autograph on Ananth’s picture after the latter interviewed him for The Daily

What was your most prized possession?

A projector I had purchased from a store in Dadar for a luxurious ₹40. I was fascinated by moving images.

An anecdote from those days?

Dilip Kumar was in the first row at the Tejpal auditorium during my first stage performance, where I played Polonius in Hamlet. Two years later, I met Dilip saab at a film publicity meet. and he told me , “I like the way you conduct yourself”. Golden words.

With Pooja Bedi in Jagmohan Mundhra’s film Vishkanya

What has changed about your attitude towards love from then?

My definition of love remains affection towards my family. Only nature deserves true love at the end of the day. The human species has, but for the rare exception, never earned it.

From HT Brunch, June 13, 2021

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