Randeep Hooda On 25 Years, 50 Films & Working On His Own Terms | League of Excellence | THR India

Anupama Chopra sits down with Randeep Hooda for League of Excellence, powered by BMW India, as the actor marks twenty-five years and roughly fifty films in the movies — a career he has built almost entirely on his own terms, at his own pace. Randeep reflects on the line he was handed early on, that an actor's talent lies in his choices, and on why he has deliberately picked parts that scare him, even when that has meant years away from a film set with no safety net of side income. He is candid about the road less travelled: turning down the Savarkar biopic the moment it was offered because he felt he did not look like the man, then being drawn back in by Vikram Sampath's biography, shaving his head and losing copious amounts of weight to find the face, and eventually directing himself in Swatantrya Veer Savarkar — a transformation he calls harder than Sarbjit, and a film whose "propaganda" label still leaves him heartbroken. The conversation then moves from craft to candour. Randeep describes acting as a private process he never imposes on a set, molding himself to each director, never watching his own monitor, trusting his body's memory when emotion betrays him — and explains why he feels secure as an actor yet always unsure in the moment, even as he was cock-sure directing himself. He talks about his Hollywood education on Sam Hargrave's Extraction opposite Chris Hemsworth and the upcoming Matchbox with John Cena, the professionalism he absorbed there, and his quiet hurt that few at home acknowledged the work. He reflects on being misread as difficult, on the sarcasm and roughness that have sometimes cost him, and on a hard-won truth — that he carries far more love from the audience than from the industry, even though every artist's deepest wish is simply to reach as many people as possible. Now a father to daughter Nyomica, he speaks about slowing down, looking after himself, and finally dealing with the melancholy that intense roles leave behind, with Inspector Avinash behind him and Eetha, his first film with Shraddha Kapoor and director Laxman Utekar, ahead. #RandeepHooda #LeagueOfExcellence #Eetha 00:00 Introduction 06:34 Why peripheral noise now matters 13:04 Honesty over box office numbers 19:33 Looking after himself as a father 26:21 No small roles, only actors 32:56 Directing himself takes care of plenty 39:22 Shooting Eetha and reuniting with Maddock