“Mukesh Ambani would never be cast as a rich man,” says Pankaj Tripathi; speaks about stereotypes in Bollywood : Bollywood News

After giving two back-to-back hits in 2023, Fukrey 3 and OMG 2, Pankaj Tripathi is all set to mesmerise the audience once again. The actor is currently gearing up for his big-screen release, Main Atal Hoon. Recently, while promoting the film, Tripathi addressed the prevalent stereotyping in Hindi cinema. He candidly used billionaire businessman Mukesh Ambani as an example, and stated that if he had been an actor no one would have cast him as a “rich man.”

“Mukesh Ambani would never be cast as a rich man,” says Pankaj Tripathi; speaks about stereotypes in Bollywood

It all started, when the National-Award winner actor told ANI, “Cinema has created a stereotype that a doctor looks like this and an engineer looks like this. During an audition, even if a junior artist is required, it is plainly stated: affluent look, elegant appearance. In movies, we see doctors like Katrina Kaif, but how many times have we seen them at AIIMS?”

He added, “If Mukesh Ambani was not a businessman and he went for an audition, he would never be cast as a rich man since rich look to hai hi nahin. What is a rich look? He is India’s richest businessman. So, people in Bollywood have created these stereotypes.”

To explain his point further, the Sacred Games actor said, “Hero dheere se muskurate hai par villain zor se haste hai aisa humne movies mein dekha hai par haqeeqat mein khul ke hasne wala dil ka accha hota hai (The hero laughs softly, but the villain chuckles aloud. We’ve seen this in movies, but in fact, the person who laughs openly is compassionate).”

Coming back to his upcoming film, Main Atal Hoon is a biopic on the life of former Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. It also stars Piyush Mishra and Daya Shankar Pandey in pivotal roles. Directed by Ravi Jadhav, the film is slated to release on January 19.

Also Read: Pankaj Tripathi recalls eating insects, changing his father’s name; says, “I picked up 10-12 of those insects and drank them with the water”