Neil Nitin Mukesh

How Was Life Growing Up in Limelight?

Being Mukesh’s grandson and Nitin Mukesh’s son, I remember being the centre of attention even as a three year old toddler. I was four years old when Yash uncle (Yash Chopra) telephoned my father and informed that he was doing a film called Vijay and that he wanted me to play junior Rishi Kapoor. “Lights, camera, action,”- those magical words continue to ring in my ears. When I read in a newspaper that Anupam Kher was starting an acting workshop, Dad spoke with Anupam uncle to ask him for his guidance because he thought I was too young. Anupam uncle said that it’s never too early nor too late.

What Do You Enjoy Playing More– an Antagonist and a Protagonist? 

I have more than 100 scripts and 30 narrations coming my way every quarter but if it doesn’t give me an adrenaline thrill, I wouldn’t do it just for becoming a few dollars richer! I always wanted to do roles that aided me to become creatively assorted and for that, some amount of madness is a pre-requisite. I think I can be phenomenal with a romantic drama or a comedy as well. When I realized that a film can ride entirely on the shoulders of a hero and every hero needs a villain to look good on screen, that’s when I decided to play characters that had layers and intensity. The day you tell yourself that this is the genre that I’m a king of, you’re doomed for failure.