‘The look is very important’ – Prosenjit

Twenty-five long years in the film industry have taught Prosenjit a vital lesson — look your best and look different. Since the potboiler world of Tollywood gives him little chance to experiment, the hero no. 1 is even more wary of getting stuck in one image and letting boredom set in.

“I try to go with the character. The look and costume give huge support to an actor. If performance accounts for 60-70 per cent, the rest is your look. And since I have been working for many many years I need to reinvent myself constantly. If I am playing a college-goer or a cop, I must look like one,” says Prosenjit, who has several looks up his sleeve in the next few months.

“I follow trends and update myself about what is in vogue in Bollywood and also Hollywood. I keep an eye on Tamil and Telugu films too. Even old Bengali films are very inspiring. But at the end of it all, an actor has to be intelligent enough to understand what will look good on him,” he adds.

Prosenjit takes t2 through some of his fave faces…

Funtoosh: I have two looks in Funtoosh (under-production). One is an engineer who goes to a village to work for its development. The other is a rockbaaj, who comes out of jail… Actually, he is a cop in disguise (picture above).

I change my look quite often also to not let the audience get bored. In this matter, I am a follower of Kamal Haasan and Anil Kapoor. Both these men go for a complete makeover as and when their role needs it.

Rajkumar: I am a milkman making millions in Rajkumar (under-production). The inspiration for the look is Lalu Prasad. Since I was shooting for Funtoosh simultaneously, I had to think of a hairstyle that would go with both films and yet be distinct. So I cut my hair short, and in Rajkumar I also wear a patch over my hair…. In Tollywood, it’s not possible for us to spend a lot of time on one particular role and its look, like they do in Bollywood. We do a lot of films a year.

Golmaal: Anil (Kapoor) inspires me a lot. When he is working with younger people, he makes sure he looks like them…. Apart from me, there’s Jisshu (Sengupta) and Tota (Roy Chowdhury) in Golmaal. I had to fit into their age group, so I changed my hairstyle. I have my hairstylist to whom I explain what I want and he does a few tricks.

Dosar: I got loads of accolades for my look in Dosar, particularly in the latter half where I am injured with several stitches on my face. I had done it all myself. There was no directorial help. At Cannes, Mani Ratnam Sir came up to me after the screening of Dosar and asked me who had done my make-up. Ritu (Rituparno Ghosh) pointed at me. I was so happy!

For scenes where I am wounded, I get all the make-up stuff from Mumbai. I surf the Net and update myself on the latest kits available in the markets. Closer to the unkempt look in Dosar is my forthcoming release Khela. I play a film director and I have a clumsy, unshaved look with long hair.

Kali-Sankar: It all begins with my character in Kali-Sankar coming out of jail. Hence, the beard and moustache. I didn’t wear a wig. I just dyed my hair. This was a love-and-revenge story. I was a full-fledged action hero in my two last releases Badshah and Nayak. I loved the rough-and-tough angry young man look in Nayak. In Badshah, I sported a very lean-mean look, cool and slick.

Sangram: I had seven looks in Sangram, which was made in 2004. That’s a film where I experimented a lot with different costumes. I wore wigs; I get my wigs done by an expert. Actually, some films offer very little scope to experiment with your look. When I come across films that do, I grab the opportunity. I love to experiment with my look!