I found fame intrusive and ran away from it, which I regret now: Abhay Deol

After the stellar success of his dark comedy Dev.D , Abhay Deol says he was unable to handle the fame , and he left the country. In Chandigarh for a film festival, Abhay spoke about how he feels vindicated today about his choice of films in his initial years.

“Cinema, with its larger-than-life persona, was considered a means of escapism back in the day,” he said, adding, “But while growing up I didn't want another escape, I wanted to retain my authenticity.”

On the question of catering to popular tastes while making films, he said, “I didn’t agree with that idea because I thought if I didn't like my movies, how will the audience appreciate it? Indian filmmakers were making only one kind of cinema and by always conforming, how can we create change?”
However, after Dev.D, Abhay got scared of fame. “I had issues with fame because I had seen its repercussion on my family and found it intrusive. So, I ran away from the country and thought the worse was going to happen. I didn't like the idea of marketing myself, and thought it was cheap. So, I missed the fame that followed, which I kind of regret now,” he said.

Abhay’s choices of films were met with skepticism during that time. “When my films didn’t work, they criticized me. When they did, they said, ‘you are 10 years ahead of your time’. The struggle of dumbing yourself down was always there, though I proved my point with Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye !”

Commenting on modern day content Abhay says despite the evolution of cinema, the struggle remains. “Just because my web series Trial By Fire was a success, doesn’t mean acceptance comes easy now and is still a struggle,” he said, adding, “Though digital space is limitless, OTT is also looking for subscribers. Till there is resilience of some filmmakers to create change, and as long as they have strength to do so, change will continue.”