Randeep Hooda wants to direct an action film

Acting is his first love, but he wants to play ‘a bit of a God’ again as a director, said Randeep Hooda, who is currently developing the script of an action film. Hooda turned director with 2024’s ‘Swatantra Veer Savarkar’, a biopic on Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar in which he played the title role. He also served as a writer and producer on the film.

He said that when you’re a writer or director, you are not a puppet in someone else’s hands.

“The more I stay away from it, the more attractive it is. But I want to direct more films. I discovered a flair for it while doing it. You feel you are in control because films are the director’s medium. Somebody else puts the music or makes your expressions better or pushes the scene. After my directorial debut, I have a newfound respect for all my directors, who work endlessly making a movie. Acting is my first love, but I want to feel like a bit of a God again. I’ve got an action movie, which I’m writing. I’m seeing how I can interpret and redefine action in my way; maybe it will work, it won’t, but it will be something which I’ll try and make,” Hooda told PTI.

The actor, known for diverse roles across films such as ‘Monsoon Wedding’, ‘Highway’, ‘Sultan’, ‘Sarbjit’ and ‘Extraction’, said choosing to play varied characters has been a deliberate move. “My image is versatility. I’m one of the few lucky ones whom the industry has not been able to put in a box. There was a time after ‘D’ and ‘Risk’ that that question arose in front of me and I consciously chose the path of being interesting rather than doing the same type of roles,” the 48-year-old said.

Hooda has stepped into the role of the villain for the Sunny Deol-starrer ‘Jaat’, billed as a high-octane drama. Citing the examples of ‘Extraction’ with Chris Hemsworth, upcoming ‘Matchbox’ with John Cena and ‘Jaat’ with Deol, the actor said starring in films from mainstream cinema has multifold benefits.