Neha Walia

Tribune New Service

Amritsar, June 5

When you close one door behind you, others open, each with a different destiny, believes Kabir Bedi, the dapper actor. In an online session hosted by Majha House, Bedi shared stories from his life candidly. “When I interviewed Beatles while working as a radio presenter with the AIR,I was so excited as they were a global phenomenon. It was so badly treated by the AIR that I resigned from my job. After that I came to Bombay and tried my luck in acting. It turned out to be a turning point of my life,” he said.

In conversation with Preeti Gill, about his book “Stories I Must Tell”, Bedi said his work in play ‘Tughlaq’ was appreciated. “Suddenly, I was signing films, going to Rome for auditions and getting selected for roles. ‘Sandokan’ was another turning point because no one had quite imagined how successful it will become,” he said. It broke all the records and brought him another role in the Bond movie ‘Octopussy’. “I was basically just an ordinary boy from Delhi who was enjoying all this stardom. And my parents saw what I was doing and they liked it. Their approval meant the world to me, so I continued doing what I was doing,” said Bedi.

Preeti also asked about the meshing of his own story with the growth of India in the book as Bedi’s parents were deeply involved in the freedom struggle.

Talking about his family, Bedi said, “My parents were both idealists. My mother, Freida Bedi, was an activist and my parents ran into Netaji in Nazi Germany. Ironically, it was the Tibetan Revolution that brought my mother into prominence. When Dalai Lama had to flee, my mother joined the Buddhist sect. It was through her that Tibetan Buddhism spread throughout the world. She has the honour of being the most highly-honoured nun in the sect even today.”

He said although he was approached by many directors, he had to turn most of them down because he could not do the song and dance routine without which mainstream Bollywood could hardly function. “Bollywood has always supported me in my toughest times. When I was going through a difficult patch, ‘Khoon Bhari Maang’, happened.” His book, which is his memoir, is not a name-blame game as he makes some of the controversial aspects of his privy to all. “Only those relationships which played an important role in my life and are integral to my life have been mentioned in the book. Stars are also people and due to the huge interest in their lives, I have purposely chosen not to go into lurid details to feed vicarious interests. I am not hungry for second-hand publicity,” he said.