"RRR, Pushpa and KGF 2 work because audience can relate to the story, high-time Bollywood too did that," says Mithun Chakraborty

Mithun Chakraborty, Bollywood’s OG Disco Dancer, has been a household name for many decades. Having made his debut in 1976 with Mrinal Sen’s Mrigayaa, which fetched him his maiden National Film Award in the Best Actor category, Mithun rose to superstardom in the ‘80s with gigantic successes like Disco Dancer, Kasam Paida Karne Wale Ki, Dance Dance, and other films, thus establishing him as the top-billed for a considerable amount of time. Post his reign as a leading man, he proved his mettle by becoming a sought-after character actor and went on to work with the best names in the industry.

However, as rosy as it appears on the outside, the journey to the top has been anything but easy for Mithun Chakraborty. In his recent interview with the Times of India, the 72-year-old actor opened up on various facets of his life as an actor, the highs and the lows, and how he waded through regardless. Recalling the time when he did as many as 30–40 films a year (during his prime in the ‘80s and ‘90s), Mithun da, as he is fondly referred to, spoke in contrast about the grimmer phase of his life and the fact that he contemplated suicide at one point.

“Everyone goes through struggles but mine was so much (to handle). There were bleak times when I felt I couldn’t achieve my goals ever and even thought of ending my life at the point. I couldn’t even go back to Kolkata, my hometown, for some personal reasons: but I endured that because I am a born fighter. My advice is to never think of suicide without putting up a fight,” said Mithun Chakraborty in the interview.

Mithun da would go on to comment on the recent upsurge of South Indian films, especially in the Hindi belt, and lauded the filmmakers for their astute eye for the audience’s desire. Stating that it is important to play to the gallery, the Kashmir Files actor added that films like RRR, Pushpa, K.G.F: Chapter 2, and others have worked mainly because the audience could relate to the subjects: he would advise Bollywood filmmakers to focus on what the fans really want to watch, should they expect a turnaround in their fortunes.

"The superstardom of South superstars like Yash, Ram Charan, Jr. NTR, or Allu Arjun has been used in these films with some amazing timing. That’s why people loved them so much," he would add in the interview with the Times of India.