“At 22, I didn’t even have a bank account,” says actor Pankaj Tripathi
At 22 #At22
Where were you career-wise?
I had no career as such, though I was doing some theatre and was preparing for the NSD (National School of Drama). Simultaneously, I had also enrolled at the Food Craft Institute in Patna.
What was your bank balance?
Zero. I didn’t even have a bank account!
In Tokyo, where he flew down to do a play. With him are two actors from the Black Tent Theatre
Who were you in love with?
I was anxious to fall in love and was restless, but I couldn’t find anyone. Main mann hi mann gulab ka phool lekar ghoomta tha (I impatiently wanted to court a girl with flowers). But there was no one to accept that rose.
And where did your focus lie…?
I wanted to do something different, but I didn’t know what exactly.
What was your frame of mind?
My thoughts kept changing from day to day, like with any other 22-year-old. I was drawn to literature and travel.
Pankaj with Sunil Bihari, an actor with whom he did a play called Panchlait
How was your rapport with family?
I was very close to them. My Babuji was hoping I’d become a doctor, but my parents were supportive of my career choice.
What did you do for fitness?
I was a tagda (awesome) athlete. I was a sprinter and was very good at high jumps.
Pankaj enacting a scene from a play inspired by Mahabharata with Assamese actress Vidyavati Phukan
What was your fashion sense like?
I would pick stuff from the street market.
And your biggest dream?
I wanted my name to appear in the newspaper for my achievements.
One memorable anecdote from then…?
I was on a train, which was passing by Sonpur, where one of the biggest animal fairs in the world is held. I alighted from the train and went to the ‘pashu mela’ and also attended the theatre that night. In the morning, I returned home and didn’t tell my parents about my adventure.
Pankaj enacting a scene from a play inspired by Mahabharata with Assamese actress Vidyavati Phukan
Your most prized possessions…?
A bicycle worth ₹600 and a gas cylinder.
If you could rewind and change one thing, what would it be?
Nothing. I’ve become what I am because of the crises and daunting situations I faced at 22.
From HT Brunch, January 31, 2021
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