Genelia and I are one entity: Riteish Deshmukh

In an interview, actor speaks about life after his father, his relationship with his wife and his love for his mother.

Actor Riteish Deshmukh, who is known for his chilled-out persona and impeccable comic timing, is a lot like his late father. He recently won a national award for the production of the Marathi film Yellow and now will soon be making his debut as a Marathi actor. The release of his upcoming movie Humshakals co-starring Saif Ali Khan is just round the corner. In a recent conversation with the Bombay Times, the actor speaks about life after his father, his wife Genelia and his love for his mother. The Times of India reported excerpts of that interview.

How did you come into films?

After finishing school, I was going to New York to work for a year, before leaving I met my father’s friend Subhash Ghai.  Subhashji was going to shoot Yaadein in London and invited me on his set to see the shoot. I said, ‘Wow, I will get to see Hrithik Roshan.’ I went on the set and spent a few days there and then moved to New York. A friend of mine was assisting Subhashji for that movie. After a year and a half, the cinematographer of Yaadein asked my friend if I was interested in acting. I was a big fan of Shahrukh Khan and have grown up on Hindi films. I used to watch five films a day and sometimes even watch the same movie 10 times. I had never thought of becoming an actor, but through that cinematographer I got my first film Tujhe Meri Kasam. My father, by this time, was the Chief Minister of Maharashtra and I had to take his permission. It took me 10 days to sum up the courage to ask him, contrary to what I thought, he said, ‘Go, do it,’ and I became an actor.

Talk about your father?

He started as a law student and became the sarpanch (elected head of a village) in his village. He was the only Chief Minister to have been a sarpanch. He was always jovial and never carried his stress home. Whenever he came home, we would all go from our rooms to his room. He would eat only at home whatever time he returned. As a family, every year we would tour for 10 days and go to places like Taj Mahal or Tirupati in a train, playing cards and antakshari.

Nothing can be worse than losing your dad. I remember him every day and there has never been a single day when I have gone out and not heard stories about things he has done for people. Thankfully, I had both my brothers to hold my hands and I was holding theirs, which made it easier as you don’t feel alone. My mother is my priority, she is the person I love the most. She binds our family and is the focal point of our lives. We live in a joint family and each of us brothers, has a different equation with her. She has always been there for us. Today, we have to be there for her.

Talk about your wife Genelia?

She acted with me in my first film. We first became best friends and then midway through the film, we started seeing each other. We were seeing each other for 10 years before we decided to get married in 2012. Genelia and I are one entity. Falling in love with your friend and that becoming your life is the best thing that can happen to a person. I love her energy and her smile. She will always put me ahead of herself, which is endearing. We are similar in terms of thinking. We like simple things and are not materialistic. For example, we both would like to go and eat bhelpuri. She initially ignored me and hated me, as I was the CM’s son, thinking that I would be arrogant. My father always taught me that the only thing constant in life is you being who you are; everything around you is temporary, be it power, hits or flops. I would want respect from anyone that I meet and for that, I will always give respect.

Did you use your education as an architect?

I am still a practising architect. The first official project I did was designing Shahrukh Khan’s Red Chillies office in Khar. He called me to say, ‘Are you an architect? Will you design my building?’ I did. Recently, I have also designed Karan Johar’s house.

Do you have friends in the industry?

Sajid Khan and Karan Johar are my friends. Sajid is someone who is the complete opposite of me. For instance, he can unabashedly have conversations with anyone on anything. As a friend, he is all heart. His friendship has no logic. Whenever you need him, he will be there. The most endearing thing about Karan is his quality of being able to make you comfortable. He is also very sensitive and will listen to you.

While we completely understand your need for privacy, for the record, is Genelia pregnant?

Yes, she is and we are looking forward to the baby and are very excited about it. 

Published in The Express Tribune, June 9^th, 2014.

Like Life & Style on Facebook, follow @ETLifeandStyle on Twitter for the latest in fashion, gossip and entertainment.