Marathi actor Sandeep Kulkarni debuts as a producer in Bollywood

A prolific actor in the Marathi film industry, Sandeep Kulkarni is often credited for putting Marathi cinema on the global map with his breakthrough roles in three National Award winning movies namely Shwaas which was India’s official entry to the Oscars, Dombivili Fast and Adhantari all of which have won National Awards. A winner of multiple state awards, Sandeep is highly respected and acclaimed for his fine portrayal of myriad characters in Marathi cinema. Bollywood too, is no stranger to Sandeep having acted in movies like Traffic Signal, D-Day, Hazaar Chowrasi Ki Maa, Shool, Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi among others. After having impressed one and all with his acting chops, Sandeep has now turned producer with a Hindi film titled Dombivili Return. While the name itself reminds one of Sandeep’s highly acclaimed Marathi film, Dombivili Fast, the newly turned producer insists that Dombivili Return is not a sequel to Dombivili Fast. “It is not at all a sequel to Dombivili Fast. That movie was about a common man with one track mind whereas Dombivili Return is about a common man whose character will find resonance among all kinds of people irrespective of their language,” says Sandeep when we met him at his residence for a chat. Sandeep also strongly feels that this film will appeal to audiences from different states. “The canvas of this film is bigger than Dombivili Fast. The identification with the central character is bigger and I believe both north and south Indians will enjoy watching it which is precisely the reason why I decided to make it in Hindi rather than in Marathi,” reasons Sandeep. While most producers shy away from acting in their own project, Sandeep is of a different mindset and inclination. Being a class actor himself, he doesn't see producing a movie as an impediment when it comes to acting in it too. “When my director gave me this script, I was highly impressed with its visual qualities and I instinctively wanted to act and produce it.” Talking about story of his pet Hindi project, Sandeep says, “I play Anant Welankar, who is a middle-class employee working in the PRO department of Mantralaya. He has a wife, daughter and brother. The movie will show how the dissection of the brain of a middle class man happens. The middle-class man never lives in the present. He is always carrying a baggage of his past and thinking about the future. So he is in a realistic illusion all the time. Then some incident triggers a change in him which makes him powerful. He tries to use the power for the good of people but gets trapped in the system and tries to return to the earlier state of life. Hence the name Dombivali Return.” While Sandeep essays the role of Anant, his wife is being played by actress Rajeshwari Sachdev. The oomph quotient of the movie is being provided by sultry Marathi actress Siya Patil. Any plans of producing more Hindi films? Sandeep replies in negative and prefers to adopt the wait and watch method. “All would depend on how this film does at the box office. If I get good profits, I will surely use it to produce more Hindi movies,” says Sandeep. Sandeep plans to release Dombivali Return somewhere in the month of July. “We are in talks with Viacom 18 and other big studios. Let’s see.” Well, let’s hope Dombivili Return is as good as Dombivili Fast if not better. The movie is written and directed by Mahendra Teredesai.