'Zindagi Ka Safar' tour proved therapeutic for Indian-Americans amidst pandemic, says Anupam Kher

Veteran actor Anupam Kher says the decision to embark on ''Zindagi Ka Safar'' tour was an impromptu one as he wanted to discuss the common struggles that people went through during the coronavirus pandemic.

As part of the tour, the 66-year-old actor did live interactive shows in major US cities, starting with Dallas on August 27. It concluded in Nashville on September 16.

Kher said the primary purpose for visiting the US was to shoot for his upcoming movie ''Shiv Shastri Balboa'', which also features Neena Gupta, Jugal Hansraj, Sharib Hashmi and Nargis Fakhri.

''I had come just for the film and was scheduled to be back home for another film shoot that got pushed to October. But due to prior commitment at the same time for a Sooraj Bharjatya film, I had to give up that project.

''So I had some time at hand and that's when I decided to stay back and planned a tour across the cities of Dallas, Atlanta, San Jose, New Jersey, Washington, Indianapolis and Nashville for 'Zindagi Ka Safar','' the actor told PTI in an interview, a day before flying back to India.

While shooting for ''Shiv Shastri Balboa'', Kher said he met a lot of Indian-Americans who were feeling a ''sense of uncertainty'' due to the pandemic.

And that's when he thought of doing these interactive live shows that can be a ''therapeutic'' experience for both the people and him. ''It has been tough for all, not to have any kind of closure with the situation. These people wanted to talk to feel some reassurance about life. ''That's when the thought crossed my mind that why not talk to these people closely and listen to them, share each other's fears, share some clips of my shows, be interactive with the audience, make memories, celebrate each other's life, which will be therapeutic for them and therapeutic for me.'' Kher said the shows had a unique concept which appealed to the audiences.

''This show was a new concept unlike my previous big stage shows... There was nothing written or rehearsed, we just went with the flow and it worked out really good. The two-and-a-half-hour-long shows were interactive. We played antakshari, recreated scenes from major movies like 'Saraansh', shared anecdotes from struggling days about life as an immigrant here and its challenges, and staying away from our families. ''We laughed at each other's jokes, shared each other's success, fears and apprehensions, and cried together about the issues, but in the end, we felt good about life' and that is what ''Zindagi Ka safar'' was all about,'' Kher said. The actor added that if he had more time with him, he would have done 20 more shows in the US.

For Kher, the most memorable moment from the show was when one audience member told him: ''Thank you for doing this, we feel better as humans with this unique experience''.

''Therefore in a way, it was not entertainment, I think it was more than that, it was therapeutic especially after one and a half years of this whole unknown fear of pandemic.

''People needed a reality check, they needed to know that what is important is now, not tomorrow or yesterday. Even I felt very good after this tour.'' During his stay in the US, Kher also addressed students of two American universities -- Princeton in New Jersey and Stanford in California -- where he spoke about his life, struggles, movies, success, India and power of truth. He was recently conferred the Degree of Honorary Doctor of Philosophy in Hindu Studies by the Hindu University of America.

Kher said the honorary doctorate was one of the ''biggest highlights'' of his life as it will give him a platform to talk about the ''philosophy of Hinduism, the oldest culture in the world''.

On the work front, he will next start shooting for filmmaker Sooraj Barjatya's upcoming directorial venture.

The movie will also feature megastar Amitabh Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa, Boman Irani, Neena Gupta, Sarika and Parineeti Chopra. Backed by Rajshri Production, the untitled movie will go on floors in October in Nepal, followed by schedules in Mumbai and Delhi.