The BRICS TimesActor Sushant Singh shared memories from his first film Satya, recalling how he had no chair on set and sat on bricks.
Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma’s cult film Satya is often remembered as the foundation of gangster dramas in Bollywood. In a recent conversation with Digital Commentary, actor Sushant Singh, who played one of Bhiku Mhatre’s associates in the film, revisited his early days on set. He described how he performed beyond the director’s call of cut and also revealed he had to sit on the floor because no chair was offered to him. He even faced criticism from the director’s assistant for tearing his costume during filming.
Sushant Singh remembers Ram Gopal Varma praising his Satya performance
Sushant Singh revealed that during the making of Satya, he was an unfamiliar face in the industry. Recalling his first day, he said, “It was my first day on Satya and we spent almost half a day on make-up because they were trying to figure out where to place the scar on my face. So I was sitting on the floor, near the plants, on some bricks; no one even offered me a chair. I was no one, no one knew me. I was a struggling actor playing a goon. Sourabh Shukla and Anurag Kashyap briefed me on the scene and said that he is a small-time goon and he has never even seen a knife in his life.”
He remembered performing the scene without breaking character since RGV had not called cut. His theatre training taught him to continue acting until the director said so. When Ram Gopal Varma finally called cut, he admired Sushant’s dedication and appreciated his performance.
Sushant recalls being shouted at by RGV’s assistant
Sushant also shared an unpleasant moment on set involving RGV’s chief assistant. He explained that he tore his pyjama during the first take, which led to a scolding. He recalled, “There was another take after this and we got ready for that. The assistant, Taufiq bhai, gave me a gaali and said, ‘Who asked you to fall? Now where will I find another pyjama?’”
About Satya
Directed by Ram Gopal Varma and written by Saurabh Shukla along with Anurag Kashyap, Satya featured J.D. Chakravarthy, Urmila Matondkar, and Manoj Bajpayee in central roles, with Saurabh Shukla, Aditya Shrivastava, and Paresh Rawal also playing key characters. The story follows Satya (Chakravarthy), a newcomer in Mumbai searching for work, who befriends Bhiku Mhatre (Bajpayee) and becomes involved in the city’s underworld. The film gained fame for its realistic portrayal of Mumbai’s crime world and set the tone for future gangster films in India.
About Sushant Singh
Sushant Singh began his career in Bollywood with Satya and later earned acclaim for portraying the bandit Durgaa Narayan Chaudhary in the 2000 film Jungle. He continued to deliver notable performances in films like Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, The Legend of Bhagat Singh, Laaga Chunari Mein Daag, and Lakshya. Beyond films, he became a familiar face across households when he hosted the crime show Savdhaan India.
Sushant Singh’s upcoming project
The actor is now gearing up for his next release, the black comedy thriller Ek Chatur Naar. Directed by Umesh Shukla, the film also stars Divya Khosla Kumar and Neil Nitin Mukesh in leading roles. It is slated to release in theatres on 12 September.
