A few minutes of interaction is enough to gauge this down-to-earth and soft spoken actor’s thirst for knowledge and a deep passion and commitment towards his art. Known for his intense and serious roles, one also sees glimpses of his stand-up comedy roots during a discussion about his acting journey.
The past five years have seen Hussain — an acclaimed actor in the Indian and international theatre scene (with his spectacular performance in the lead role in Othello— making his presence known in Hindi, regional and world cinema. Although a late entrant to the world of cinema, the actor has managed to garner critical acclaim with performances in films such as Ishqiya, Kaminey, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, English Vinglish and Life of Pi, to name a few. Having traveled the world and worked with the best, Hussain has trained under veterans such as Khalid Tyabji, Shaupon Boshu and Barry John. He has reversed the roles while teaching at the National School of Drama and the Royal Conservatory of Performing Arts, Netherlands.
A perfectionist by nature, Hussain has taken his time to understand the nuances of art and points out that it is not the length of the role, but the depth of it, which makes him select a film. “What pulls me towards a role is something I have never tried, is complex, out of my comfort zone, takes my sleep away and helps me confront the unknown areas”, he says.
Genesis of the actor within
Hussain’s acting journey started at a young age in the small town of Goalpara, Assam. Having been greatly influenced by neighborhood comedians (through their art of stand-up comedy), the actor performed in several plays in his neighborhood and school. Theatre gave him the freedom to liberate his thoughts and ideas, and this connection with performing arts became stronger.
By the age of 16, Hussain left his home to study philosophy at B Borooah College, Guwahati, and started acting in college plays and performing as a stand-up comedian. He would mimic popular Bollywood actors in between performances by a local stand-up comedy group, Bhaya Mama.
While his father, a teacher by profession, wanted him to continue his studies and become a professor, he was planning to take acting as a full-time profession. “Coming from a humble middle class background, where theatre was appreciated and enjoyed as an ‘art’ but was not seen as a financially stable career choice during those times, it was not an easy decision” he says.
But the stage had already been set for his career. After achieving fame in Assam, Hussain performed in a mobile theatre group doing stage and radio plays. The group’s stand-up comedies were enjoyed and engaged the audience with its socio-political satires.
The next couple of years saw a successful run for Hussain both in the Assamese television and film industry (doing different documentaries, tele and feature films). Next, he wanted to go to Bombay and become a successful Hindi commercial film actor. Destiny had other plans, however. In a chance encounter, Hussain happened to watch Franklin J Schaffner’s Papillon starring Dustin Hoffman and Steve McQueen. “Their acting was so authentic I thought they were real characters. If it wasn’t for the movie, I might have gone to Bombay; but it was the National School of Drama (NSD) in Delhi that became my calling.” So, in 1990, at the age of 27, he was in NSD for a three-year course.
Discovering the actor within
Hussain may be a mentor to many in his alma mater but his initial NSD days as a student were tough. It took a lot of effort to adjust, open up and fight his insecurities, what with his inability to converse in Hindi. After NSD, it was the Charles Wallace India Trust Scholarship to study drama at the Drama Studio London. Back in India, It was a whole new experience for him. A road trip with his teacher, Khalid Tyabji, meant travelling to remote and tribal parts of India. The experience changed his outlook towards life, art and nature. “It taught me to look at things beyond the typical world view and gave a new understanding of looking and dealing with things, with the relationship between man and nature getting clearer,” he says.
The actor within
In 1999, Hussain was offered the lead role in Othello, directed by Roysten Abel (friend from NSD). The play was a turning point in his theatre career. Now only did it get the prestigious Edinburgh Fringe First Award, the play also brought international acclaim for Hussain and helped him establish as a theatre actor in India. TV offers also came his way, and he played lead roles in several television series such as Jasoos Vijay, Iti Srikanto and For Real . Stagnancy set in after a while, however, and Hussain started to feel artistically deprived. So he left everything in Delhi and went to Kerala. For six months, he just read books at his friend’s house and shifted to Pondicherry to read some more. “I was seeking answers to a lot of question through books on theatre and mysticism from India, Russia, Japan and other countries”.
pproached by a group of NSD students who wanted to learn acting and had heard about his experimentations in exploring acting. Since he had time, they decided to go to Hampi to teach and learn. While the focus of the study was to search a doorway towards the elusive creative reservoir that we all have within (using body as instrument), the experiences they gained and the bonds created were priceless. Word spread and they were joined with more students from New Zealand, America, Austria, Denmark, France and Germany. During this time, he remained the artistic director and trainer of the Society for Artists and Performers in Hampi (from 2004 to 2007). “There was an emotional connect with the topography, rocks, rivers and we had so much learning and fun, which did not impact on the basic issues of no electricity or continuous running water. Having planned to stay for six months, we ended up staying for almost 31/2 years,” he says
The big screen
Life became fast-paced when he accepted a cameo in Abhishek Choubey’s Ishqiya (2010), which was a beginning of his successful run in the world of films. Although his first major role was inAgent Vinod (2012), films such as Gangor, Life of Pi, The Reluctant Fundamentalist and Lessons in Forgetting got him critical international acclaim. In 2012, Hussain won the best actor award at the New Jersey South Indian Independent Film Festival for his movie Lessons in Forgetting.
The driving force
“The journey to explore yourself through different characters, the freedom to express and use your imagination to portray the character gives a high that gets missed in doing films or television,” says Hussain, defending his love for theatre. The continuous rehearsing in theatre also brings more self-awareness and improves acting, he feels. Having first-hand experience of the benefit of art on society’s evolution, Hussain points out that until the ruling class does not understand the function of art in human growth, its progress will not happen. After all, cinema is just 120 years old, while theatre is a 10,000- year-old craft. Thus, the audience and the government need to take concrete steps for it work at a deeper level. “In an evolved society like that of Europe, which cares for its women, kids, has basic human values, stresses on social security, one can see the influence of art in its evolution. India has a rich tradition of art, be it folk theatre or dance forms,” he comments, adding what needs to be done is to make people aware of their roots. “The focus should be to awaken and target the upper-body senses such as heart and mind, rather than focusing on sex and violence,” he explains. Based in Delhi, Hussain is doing all that he loves — cooking, reading books and scripts, doing meaningful movies, teaching students the art of acting and performing his play Karmnistha, a dialogue between Krishna and Arjun on the battlefield, along with his guide and friend, Dilip Shankar.