I want to use my knowledge, not my body Kabir Bedi

Kabir Bedi, the actor with the baritone voice and green eyes had the Indian women in a tizzy. Kabir Bedi is more known for his personal life rather than his work. Back in India after doing a series of serials abroad, Kabir Bedi, at the age of 60, is now to host a show on Zoom titled Directors Cut. Bedi speaks to tellychakkar on a lot of issues and has us drooling. You have covered a long journey from Sandokan to now including Octopussy, Bold and Beautiful. What has it been like? Oh! It's been a fabulous journey, learning and meeting wonderful people. I have got a wonderful chance to explore the world. I am being admired by people from different countries. I have had hard times also but then to sum it up it's been an interesting and educational journey. What excited you to do Directors Cut? Being an actor I was always interested in directors and their cut. With this show viewers would not only come to know about directors but also a great deal about me as well. The show is about exploring both the directors and me. It is a one on one with the directors rather my colleagues. I have grown up with them. I think that is a plus point because I know a lot about them and so certain things or questions would surface that not many people know about such directors. In times when viewers want to see young hosts, how come you decided to join this league? It is because I have never accepted any barriers of categorisation. I have defied everyone who believed that a hero can't do a villainous role and a villain can't do a role of a hero. I have done everything from cinema to theatre and radio. I have established myself as an actor in India and also internationally. Age is the least of that barrier to me. See I also feel that for such shows age always turns out to be an advantage, mainly because you turn out to be far more experienced and well versed. I don't think young people have any problems with me and I have no problems with them as well. It would be seen in the show as well. I have taken extra care in selection of the guests. My guests would vary from veteran directors like Raj Kumar Santoshi and David Dhavan to younger brigade of Sudhir Mishra, Farhan Akhtar and Aamir Khan. We have done a broad selection of directors who have made important films. People will come to know everything about these directors like what are they like in person, What inspires them, their shortcomings, How they deal with successes and failures. It's a verge of discovery for viewers and me as well. Hosting today is all about being yo and with spiked hair. Any special efforts from your side or any make-over for this show? No, I have not done anything special. I will be what I am. As you see me in public it would be same on the show as well. It would be a combination of Indian and Western clothes. Having been a part of this industry will you interview your friends from Bollywood? Or will the channel decide? No, it is a mix of both. It is both the channel and I decide on the list. I eliminate and add some names. There is the first slot where we have called 13 directors and the next slot of 13 directors would be decided depending on the feedback we hear from people via mails and sms. We need that feedback from the viewers and also their suggestions which would help the show eventually. Beingf a travelling actor what attracts you to India? My heart is always in India. I go where my work will take me. Now my base is in India, my focus is on India. I will be doing a lot more work in India but I will also be traveling abroad. Any experiences that you would like to share with us from the sets of Directors Cut? Oh! The experience is been fantastic. You know all these directors are so different from each other. There would be someone very talkative and actually I had to stop them in the middle like Sanjay Gupta. Then there were some directors who were very quiet and you had to actually make them open up. It was great to see them defending themselves. There were many surprises like Raj Kumar Santoshi openly talking about his relationship with Meenakshi Sheshadri. We are not there to expose them, we make them expose themselves. They talk about there fears, hopes and childhood dreams. It is like sitting at home and chatting with friends. There are some really fine conversations from very fine minds. People are interested in interesting people. It is a quiet show and you will not see me jumping in with questions in every two seconds. Will you be compering the show in English? Did you face any difficulties with the language? It would be Hinglish (mix of Hindi and English). I am comfortable with both the languages. Do you think Indian television has come off age? Television is the most important part of the media, it is the best medium to reach the masses, it has reached everyone's home, is a great opinion forming stage. Television in India is not just about the entertainment but it also has news and information aspect to it. To be precise television at present is not jus entertaining India but also informing India. Aren't you considering any television serials? What's next? I am developing some projects which I want to both produce and direct. I want to make films in India for India and for International market as well, as far as my acting career is concerned, it goes on. I have been everywhere from Bollywood to European cinema but now I am going to reduce on my acting and increase my focus on direction I will use my knowledge rather than my body. What about your relationship with your daughter Puja Bedi? Oh I have a fantastic relation with my daughter Puja, I am proud of her achievements and I really find it applaudable what interests me is that Puja has also taken up dancing now like her mother. There is no limit to what Puja can do. I am proud of her as my daughter, as a professional and as a mother to her kids.