Khalid Mohamed’s conversations with actor-turned-director Riteish Deshmukh over time, with an update on his most ambitious project yet, Raja Shivaji.

Riteish Deshmukh’s journey from a comic actor in Bollywood to directing and starring in the ambitious historical drama Raja Shivaji marks a significant turning point in his career. This detailed account by Khalid Mohamed traces Deshmukh’s personal evolution, cinematic choices, political legacy, and creative risks. With insights into his upbringing, influences, and dedication to portraying Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, the piece captures the intersection of history, cinema, and identity in contemporary Indian filmmaking.

So at this very moment Riteish Deshmukh must be on needles and pins – anyone would be. He has directed and finessed the historical drama Raja Shivaji – scheduled for release on May 1 – besides portraying the eponymous Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj himself. The opulently mounted project has been co-produced by his wife Genelia Deshmukh.

The 47-year-old son of Vilasrao Deshmukh, Congress leader who was Chief Minister of Maharashtra twice (1999-2003, 2004-2008), passed away in 2012 while serving in the Union Cabinet. A charismatic politician, I did wonder for a moment why Riteish hadn’t made a biopic on him or at least a documentary. Perhaps he will someday, currently his future pivots on the response to Raja Shivaji. Fingers and toes crossed that the film doesn’t arouse controversies, as has become the custom ever since the ballooning of social media and the filing of F.I.R.s, be they justified or not.

An Actor Beyond Comedy

Since I’ve known Riteish Deshmukh since the last millennium, I can vouch for the fact that the actor doesn’t have a mean bone in his body. That his filmography is littered with risible comedies (haven’t yet recovered from the uber chauvinistic Kya Kool Hain Hum, forget his pop-ups in equally objectionable, cringe comedy franchises of the Grand Masti and Housefull kind) has been unfortunate. Why a trained architect from the Kamla Raheja College of Architecture chose to gravitate towards the Bollywood whirligig has remained a conundrum to me. Incidentally, he has studied at the famed Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute of New York.

To be fair, his performances in script-backed roles – as an antagonist in Villain, the off-the-beaten-track laugh raiser Malaamaal Weekly and Raid 2 – have asserted that he can act with credibility and conviction, given an opportunity.

Thus far, like the rest of the Deshmukh family, he hasn’t plunged into politics. His elder brother, Amit Deshmukh, is an MLA from Latur district. And his younger brother, Dhiraj Deshmukh, was an MLA from Latur Rural in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly.

Encounters and Personal Glimpses

Be that as it may, I had met Riteish occasionally at film previews of mainly Shah Rukh Khan movies, where he would clap deliriously at the slightest hint of a wisecrack (had to shush him up once), and once at a Lonavla guest house, accompanied by his then girlfriend, Genelia D’Souza, and her family. They married in 2012, according to Hindu and Christian rites, and are parents to two sons, Rian and Rahyl.

Cut back to 1998, I had approached him to fulfil a wish I had nurtured ever since I was a schoolkid – and that was to visit Varsha, the Chief Minister’s official residence on Mount Pleasant Road, a quaint, old-worldly Xanadu, secured by half a dozen wrestler-like bouncers. It was close to my apartment, just a javelin’s throw away. When I requested a tour of the place, his response was, “Sure, any time you want, but do stay for lunch.”

On a Saturday noon then, all agog, I entered the Chief Minister’s bungalow. A recce through an empty compound, a series of wooden-beamed rooms with minimalist furniture, the walls painted in neutral white and cream shades, and I was in Riteish’s den packed with age-old black leather sofas. For a while we exchanged un-neighbourly notes about how the CM’s Road was perhaps the only one which maintained a ‘silence zone’ in the vicinity.

  

The Interview Begins

Riteish looked poker-faced and sheepishly announced that he was feeling like a student sitting for an exam (must be my professorial specs). I told him to feel at home, checked out his room, stored with more branded sneakers than at a mall, tasteful artworks by contemporary painters, DVDs, paperbacks and college campus pictures. After the Varsha tour, followed by phulkas, veggies and iced chhas, over dessert, he was subjected to a Q and A. Cheerily, I asked, “So what’s newsy?”

After a prolonged silence, he answered tangentially, “Sir, you won’t believe this but it’s taken me five-and-a-half years to get to this interview with you.”

“What! And stop calling me sir,” went my plea. “Do you visit Facebook or Orkut?”

“No…only designpotters.com to see funky furniture designs,” he responded seriously.

Had he read all the books in the room?

Answer: “No, but I’m getting there. I read Dan Browns, funny stuff like 10,000 Ways to Say I Love You. Before Shah Rukh (Khan) told me that I should read, I was only into Tinkle comics.” He looked guilty, as if he had committed grand larceny.

“Rits, relax child,” I suggested avuncularly.

“Trying,” he mumbled. 

“I don’t bite. Accha listen, you come across as the typical Nice Guy…no darker side to you?” I had to ask.

“Only when there’s no electricity, ha ha!” Now that was a smart one.

“Ha ha. No evil thoughts,” I persisted.

“Thoughts? Maybe as a teenager I wanted to peep into bedrooms…but I didn’t,” Riteish said, adding, “I never lie.”

Understanding Politics

Did he understand politics? To that, he admitted, “Yes, I’m like the outsider looking in. It’s a high-pressure job. The one time I saw my father (Vilasrao Deshmukh) really go through a crisis was in 1995 when he lost an election. It was like a death in the family, but dad isn’t demonstrative. He said OKAY, fine, he’s always been a fighter. The only time I’ve seen tears in his eyes was when he lost his mum…and then dad.”

There were allegations that his films – like the recent De Taali – were ‘fed’ because of his political connections, with tickets being bought up in bulk in Maharashtra. “I’ve heard that too,” he shrugged. “Ironically, De Taali didn’t do well in Mumbai at all. The allegations started because some shows were sold in bulk to corporation houses…like the shows of many new movies are.”

Would he ever contest the elections?

“Never,” but after a pause laughed lightly, “But never say never. My brothers are way more politically savvy than I am.”

But Riteish did campaign for the Congress. Right off, he replied, “Yes. And I had to rehearse the speeches intensely. I get stage-fright.”

As the CM’s son, what kind of privileges does he enjoy? “Meaning?” he was nonplussed. Like if he drives through a red light? To that he smiled, “I don’t drive, so no problems there. No privileges, otherwise every CM’s son would be like those goons they show in the movies.”

  

Cinema vs Reality

Yeah, so how does he react when CMs are portrayed as foul villains in the movies? Relaxed now, he contended, “Not a single movie has come close to real politics. So it doesn’t bother me. And every minister’s son is shown raping college students and doing drugs. In college, whenever I was asked, I would say I’m an agriculturist’s son.”

What about that ugly incident involving Aftab Shivdasani being charged with drug abuse in Pune’s Fire and Ice discotheque in which his name was dragged in although he was present there? Unfazed, he reasoned,

“That incident was blown out of proportion. A complaint was lodged by Aftab, and the licence of the discotheque was suspended for a while.”

Riteish, you’re being so politically correct, I remarked. He played with a cushion, chucked it around and laughed, “Yes. I guess that’s in my genes.”

Of the 15 or more films he had done so far, which did he cherish? Of them, his pick was, “My first one which was so well promoted and was a major commercial success, Priyadarshan sir’s Malaamaal Weekly.”

And what about him being typecast as a funny guy? A comedian with a flair for slapstick? “Yes, there is that fear,” he admitted. “But comedies make you laugh, so it’s not a bad space to be in.”

Ask him whether he’s an instinctive mimic, and his take was, “I don’t know about instinctive…but I do enjoy mimicry within a closed room, and it shouldn’t be extremely bitchy.”

Then what about that lampoon of Aamir Khan at an award show? “You should have seen the original script,” he recalled. “It had many jokes which were in bad taste and were deleted. I texted Aamir that I was doing this act to ask if he had any objections. He messaged back that he had no objections at all and was looking forward to seeing it.”

In the Company of Stars

Riteish is a gung-ho Shah Rukh Khan fan, attending nine out of ten of his previews. Right? “I’ll always be a die-hard fan,” he stated. “As for those previews, make that eight-and-a-half please. In fact, Anil Kapoor was telling me, ‘Arre Karan Johar and you seem to be in every camp. Kabhi Shah Rukh ke saath, kabhi Bachchan ke saath, kabhi Salman ke saath.’”

To that he chortled, “The thing is I just feel excited to be in the film world. Where else would I find a friend like Karan? He’s my fashion cop. He was so angry with me for wearing a kurta-pajama to an award function where everyone else was in black ties.”

Doesn’t he feel bad when Karan Johar casts, say Vivek Oberoi, instead of him in one of his film productions? Measuring his words, he said briefly, “Karan has an eye for true talent. Maybe I don’t fit the bill…not yet anyway.”

What happens when one of his heroines, Ayesha Takia, drops out of a project?

“There were date issues, but I know that’s one of the greatest cover-ups,” was his terse comment.

So, how do we end this interview, Riteish? To that, he coined a one-liner, “By letting me call you sir.”

Epilogue: The Making of Raja Shivaji

To update this interview, I texted Riteish a couple of questions. Ignoring whatever publicity strategies his PR team may have on the cards, he answered promptly: What was the germinating point for your most extravagant film yet?

Everyone has grown up hearing stories of the valour and bravery of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. As a child, one could simply close one’s eyes and imagine how it all happened.

Back in 2016, I was having a conversation with my director friend, Ravi Jadhav, about the history of Maharashtra, of greatness and the achievements of Shivaji Maharaj. At the end of it, we were so inspired that we thought we should make a film on the legendary figure whom we all looked up to. We tried to make the film then, but unfortunately due to some unforeseen circumstances, we couldn’t realize the dream at that time.

Later in 2023, after Ved, my debut film as a director, Genela suggested that I should direct it myself. It was a huge undertaking, but at first, we decided to write the script. It took us two years to lock the script and for me to embark on this directorial journey.

Isn’t it arduous to double-task as an actor and director?

As daunting the experience was, it was truly an enriching one too. It’s the biggest film I have directed so far, with the largest ensemble cast from both the Marathi and Hindi film industries.

Genelia is a dream producer, extremely meticulous and prepared to the Tee. I was fortunate to have her by my side since we share a common vision for the film. Although many could have doubted us, Jyoti Deshpande and Jio Studios backed our ambition to create a large-scale film that truly engages the audience on multiple levels.

Since I’d already acted in and directed Ved (about a dejected alcoholic’s redemption), that experience helped me tremendously. As an actor and director, I was in total sync with myself. I didn’t overthink. I just went with the flow…sir.

Power And Responsibility, Leadership Under Lens, Influence Examined, Authority And Accountability, Public Figures In Focus, Power Structures, Who Holds Power, Decision Makers, Legacy And Impact,