I still remember purani dilli ka khana and burra kebabs: Sachin Khedekar

Be it the ambitious Shreekant Pandit in the film, Astitva (2000) or the ruthless lawyer in Rustom (2016), actor Sachin Khedekar is known for his intense roles. However, he says he’s not so serious in real life. “People have taken me too seriously. I’m actually not so old… I have always done roles which are older than my age and I have been stuck in image but otherwise I’m a happy-go-lucky cheerful guy,” says Sachin Khedekar.

Presently in Delhi, the Mumbai-based actor enjoys watching a gamut of plays and comments that Delhi’s theatre is completely different from that of Mumbai. “Over there, it’s a set audience which is always waiting for a new play to come. In Delhi, the theatre-goers are less in number but what’s encouraging is people who are creative are regularly enagaged,” says Khedekar who is a jury member on the panel of META theatre festival.

I still remember purani dilli and khana around Jama Masjid. We travelled a lot then and shot at Zakir Husain College. I have those memories and since then everytime I come here, I remember all the burra kebabs (lamb chops)!

It’s not just the theatre scene which draws him to Delhi. “We shot a major portion of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero (2005) in Delhi. I still remember purani dilli and khana around Jama Masjid. We travelled a lot then and shot at Zakir Husain College. I have those memories and since then everytime I come here, I remember all the burra kebabs (lamb chops)!

And of course when I come with my wife, it’s great to go shopping at Janpath,” he says.

He recently shot with actor Renuka Shahane, for a web series, and says that it was a “big nostalgic trip” as the two were working together “after almost two decades”. About the new medium of web series or short films, the actor says, “I’m a huge fan of all the new stand-up comedians and have been watching all the Netflix West shows. There are so many people watching it. You get so many instant reviews, which are most important for an actor like me. I think the web is the best thing for me to work with a younger director and young team and a younger audience. It gives me a new perception and keeps me alive.”