Anirban Bhattacharya at KIFF: I am not a star but Lionel Messi is and I am tense about the World Cup Final match

Anirban Bhattacharya refused to consider himself to be a star. Instead, he asked to pray for his star, Messi, who will be playing in the World Cup final against France on Sunday. He took part in the Cine Adda on Saturday at the 28th Kolkata International Film Festival. Cinema Adda, a popular chat show at the festival, saw Prosenjit Chatterjee, Chanchal Chowdhury, Bony Sengupta, Koushani Mukherjee, Ishaa Saha, Nazifa Tushi, Raj Chakraborty, and Anirban. The event kickstarted with a discussion on stardom versus character artists.    

While presenting his speech, Anirban said, “I don’t consider myself to be a star. That is because I have a certain parameter of a star. That parameter is not quantified by how many people know them. It largely depends on my emotional memory of childhood – something that was developed when I was growing up seeing heroes on screen. I am not a star as far as my parameter is concerned.”

Anirban also appreciated the love he received throughout his career. “I am indebted to my profession. I was a little boy when my parents took me to recitation classes. In a recitation competition, I stood still for a while, then I choked and walked out. That Anirban Bhattacharya performed on stage, acted in front of the camera, and received love. I think this is enough for me. I don’t know if this is called stardom or love for an actor. I am grateful to every single one,” he said.  

Anirban insisted that he stays away from the bubble of stardom. “There were chances of entering those bubbles of stardom. Here in Kolkata, such buddles are amply available also. But my effort has always been to stay away from those bubbles,” the actor said. 

Elaborating on his idea of a film star, Anirban said, “I believe, when a star alights in their car, his polished shoes will be seen first. Then their waving hands. Then you will get to see the backside of his head. That’s exactly how our cultural icon Uttam Kumar got introduced in Satyajit Ray’s Nayak. For me, that is stardom. For me, a star can be worshipped. A star lives my unattainable dreams. A star does extraordinary things on screen and makes its audience believe that. That faith is stardom. I believe it is important to have stardom. We live in an unjust society with a lot of heartbreaks and shattered dreams. I think this larger-than-life love is necessary for our lives. I don’t think I will ever become that star but I will look forward to such stars.”

Anirban is a die-hard Argentina fan. Talking about his star, he said, “Right now, I am extremely tense with one of the stars in my life. His result will come out on December 18 at 10.30 pm. His name is Lionel Messi.”