I envy Amitabh Bachchan, says Om Puri

   Veteran actor Om Puri has indeed come a long way since his film debut in 1976 with Ghashiram Kotwal. To him, his list of off-beat as well as mainstream films spells personal success. And after his foray into Hollywood with films like East is East, City of Joy, The Ghost and the Darkness, among others, Puri has left an indelible mark across the shores too.

   Actor Om Puri Says that he is amazed by the super star's enery levels. The actor is proud of his body of work today. But he rues, “I don’t get enough meaty parts in Bollywood anymore. I regret it and I do envy a lot of people… like Mr Bachchan (Amitabh Bachchan). He has such spirit and energy, even at this age. I’ve always been an admirer. He’s an inspiration for any actor; anybody would be envious of him. Such exertion at this age is commendable. I envy the kind of parts that he gets too,” says Puri.

   The actor, whose latest release, Life Goes On, opened to mixed reviews, is all set for his upcoming film Teen Thay Bhai to hit the theatres. While the former sees him portraying the fool of Shakespeare’s King Lear, the latter will have him play an exasperated man always arguing with his brothers. “I’m a great admirer of Rakeysh’s (director Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra) work and the script is hilarious — on the lines of Hera Pheri and Malamaal Weekly. And I took up Girish Karnad’s film because, apart from being my teacher, he’s also been an inspiration,” Puri says, adding that he admired actor Sharmila Tagore since his college days and Life Goes On was a great opportunity for him to share screen space with her.