#WhereAreThey Series: I hate the goddamn camera, says Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander actor Mamik Singh

Actor Mamik Singh, who managed to make his mark with his debut film, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992) despite the star persona of Aamir Khan, soon disappeared from the silver screen, leaving his fans disappointed. While the actor did appear in a couple of TV shows, films and web series, his aversion to camera has always kept him away from taking up bigger roles.

Singh tells us, “What I am doing now, or have done in the past is not something what I am up to in life these days.”

Though the actor was offered several roles, he chose to do projects only if he felt like it. The 58-year-old explains, “Beech beech mein log mujhe bulate rehte hain, and people do come to me with offers often saying, ‘sir aap aa jao, yeh karlo ya woh karlo’. And based on my mood, I go and do the projects.”

After his debut, the actor starred in TV shows such as Saahil, Maal Hai To Taal Hai, Aa Gale Lag Ja, Chandrakanta, Woh and Ssshhhh…Koi Hai. He was also a part of web shows such as Rangmanch, Scam 1992 – The Harshad Mehta Story and Who’s Your Daddy season 2.

But Singh insists that it is not his story anymore. He says, “I have been there, done that enough in life. Now, it is not my story.”

When asked why he feels that way, the actor is quick to reply, “Mere ko na pehle shauk tha, na aaj shauk hai. I am not even interested in telling people about my upcoming projects or things like mere mein bahut potential hai. I never intended to do that when I started my career, and that is true even today, or seek any milega. I was a very reluctant actor. I hate the goddamn camera.”

He asserts that if it wasn’t for his aversion, he would have done “150 films by now. But, I’m not even in the (film) circuit”.

So how did he decide to be a part of actor Akshay Kumar’s BellBottom that released recently. “The director (Ranjit M Tiwari) came to me with a request to do this role of Akshay’s brother in the film. He said he wanted to explore another aspect of brotherhood. After some time, I agreed to be part of it and left for Scotland with the team.”

However, many of his parts got chopped off during the editing.

“All the scenes of this exploration of the relationship between brothers didn’t even make it to the final cut. I even had a conversation with the director, asking him why he brought me to Scotland for such a small role. Believe me, I wanted to get out of Scotland so bad,” he quips, and further reveals, “I have also worked with Manoj Bajpayee in Despatch. But again, I am not interested in it. Jo thodha bahut bhi kar raha hun woh bhi bahut jaldi hi end ho jayega.”

Now, Singh wants to shift his focus entirely and work for the greater good. “I am working on two things — an enterprise which will help animals and ensure that they don’t suffer due to lack of attention, and second is towards education, where everyone in the society will get a fair and equal chance to get ahead in life,” he signs off.