‘I am not that great director’: Rohit Shetty says he’s happy being ‘Irani hotel ka maska pao, chai vala’

New Delhi, January 20

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Despite several blockbuster hits such as ‘Singham’, ‘Golmaal’ and ‘Sooryavanshi’ to his credit, filmmaker Rohit Shetty feels he is “not that great a director”.

In a candid conversation, Rohit, who is known for his out-and-out masala entertainers, said it wasn’t just talent and hard work, but also luck that played a big part in making him one of the most sought-after directors in the industry.

“I believe luck is very important, blessings are important. It is not your talent. Talent is there, everyone is working hard. I know my popularity. I am aware of it and will not shy from saying that, but at the same time, I also know that I am not that great director,” the filmmaker said.

“I am not someone who made ‘Lagaan,’ I am not someone who made ‘Rang De Basanti’, I am not someone who made ‘3 Idiots’, I am not someone who made ‘Sholay’ or ‘Mughal-e-Azam’. I know that I am very popular…I know that people love me a lot and I am lucky. So how can I give it back is by whatever I do for the society or by working hard in my films. At the end of the day, all I can say is I worked hard as I could… and I worked hard not only for myself, but also for the love of the people,” Rohit said.

The helmer of ‘Chennai Express’ is currently enjoying the massive response to his OTT debut series ‘Indian Police Force’, which stars Sidharth Malhotra, Shilpa Shetty Kundra and Vivek Oberoi in lead roles.

On whether he would make films like ‘Lagaan’ in the future, Rohit said, “It’s a game of luck…agar kabhi hua ban gayi to ban gayi. At the same time, I am also happy in my space. I am happy with my Golmaals and Singhams because I have created them on my own.”

“If one is a South Indian, he will skip past several eateries dishing out delectable Italian cuisine and go to Shivsagar restaurant to have idli. So I am that Shivsagar restaurant. I am that Irani hotel ka maska pao and chai vala. I am very happy in my space, I don’t want to go there (Italian eateries) because I am not that great honestly so I am happy with whatever I am doing,” Rohit added.

In his successful career behind the camera, Rohit has also helmed films such as ‘Bol Bachchan’, ‘All The Best’, ‘Golmaal Returns’, ‘Golmaal 3’, ‘Singham Again’ and ‘Simmba’.

There is already a lot of buzz around his next ‘Singham Again’, which stars Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Deepika Padukone, Akshay Kumar, Ranveer Singh, and Tiger Shroff.