Jackie Shroff has completed 40 years in Bollywood. In 1983, he made his debut as a lead actor in Subhash Ghai’s film Hero. Jackie Shroff got negative feedback from the critics but the audience made the film blockbuster. Despite polarised remarks from the critics, the masses accepted Jackie Shroff as their “Hero”. 40 years later, Jackie Shroff looks back in time and says that he was unaffected by the criticism he received during his debut.
During an interview with senior journalist and author Bharathi S Pradhan, actor Jackie Shroff stated, “I loved it (criticism) because I was nothing and then people atleast knew about me. A lot was spoken about me and a lot of bricks were thrown at me, but it was fun because my film was running. Subhash Ghai said, ‘Don’t you worry. You have become a hero.’ I asked him if people are talking badly about me, so wouldn’t it matter? He said that ‘it doesn’t matter to the masses. If they like you, they like you’. People keep writing about you, it’s their job. They are critics. Critics are supposed to criticize.”
Over the years, Jackie Shroff has built his own style statement. He can wear anything and can still rock the look with confidence and style. Speaking on the same, he said, “The thing is, I feel comfortable in what I wear. When dogs bark, I know that I have arrived.”
Recalling his struggle days, Jackie said, “We used to love Khaadi Bhandar and purchase clothes from there because it was sasta, sundar aur tikau (good, budget-friendly and long-lasting). We used to get curtain material between Rs 4 to 7. We used to buy that and make jeans out of it. We used to paint our ganjis and we wore boots of 4-inch heels. So, when we used to walk on streets wearing that, dogs really used to go bananas. And we used to know that we look different.”
“Then came the era of all our Indian dressing, you know that Band gala Nehru, Sherwani, Churidar and kurta. Later, in the 70s, the hippie influx was there where they wanted peace and love. So, there was a union of different styles, of easy Western and beautiful traditionally ethnic Indian. So, these two joined together and it became me. I could wear boots on my dhoti. I have done it and I love it,” he added.
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