The
National
Film
Award
Special
Mention
this
year
after
a
long
journey
dotted
with
several
immensely
intense
portrayals
has
also
brought
new
responsibilities
for
Pankaj
Tripathi.
Receiving
the
special
mention
for
his
performance
in
'Newton',
a
dark
comedy
on
the
electoral
system
of
India,
which
also
won
the
National
Award
for
Best
Hindi
Film,
Tripathi
is
happy
that
the
highest
recognition
to
his
art
has
come
through
this
meaningful
film
in
which
he
plays
a
paramilitary
officer.
"I
have
been
associated
with
the
industry
in
one
way
or
the
other
for
almost
20
years
now
but
my
craft
has
got
recognised
through
'Newton'
which
was
also
nominated
for
the
Oscars...
But
the
National
Award
has
given
me
much
more
happiness
than
any
international
acclaim," Tripathi,
who
was
on
a
shooting
schedule
recently
in
Lucknow,
told
PTI.
"The
National
Award
is
a
matter
of
pride
for
me
and
it
has
also
increased
my
responsibilities
towards
the
country...
My
effort
from
now
on
will
be
to
do
cinema
which
gives
a
message
to
society," Tripathi.
Besides
"Newton",
the
actor
was
seen
in
string
of
films
such
as
"Bareilly
Ki
Barfi",
"Anaarkali
of
Aarah",
"Kaalakaandi",
"Fukrey
Returns",
"Munna
Michael",
"Coffee
with
D"
and
"Gurgaon"
last
year."In
the
recent
past,
I
had
been
doing
two
commercial
and
two
off-beat
films
yearly...
I
will
continue
to
do
commercial
films
but
will
be
more
alert
is
choosing
the
subjects
from
now
on...
I
will
make
a
conscious
effort
to
pick
up
roles
which
give
a
social
message
besides
being
entertaining,"
Tripathi
said,
adding
that
"Masaan"
and
"Nil
Batte
Sannata"
were
two
such
films.
Tripathi,
who
had
set
out
with
dreams
of
making
it
big
from
Belsand
village
in
Gopalganj
district
of
Bihar
to
Delhi
in
2001,
via
National
School
of
Drama
and
finally
landing
in
Mumbai
in
2004,
said
that
people
first
noticed
him
in
"Gangs
of
Wasseypur"
though
he
had
done
a
large
body
of
work
before
the
Anurag
Kashyap-directed
cult
film
released.
"It
was
Sultan
Qureshi,
the
character
of
'Gangs
of
Wasseypur' which
brought
success
as
a
baddie
but
it
were
the
TC
and
teacher's
roles
in
'Masaan'
and
'Nil
Battey
Sannata'
that
broke
the
villain's
mould
and
helped
me
successfully
explore
the
other
shades
-
be
it
comedy,
intense
or
serious,
surprising
the
audience
all
the
time,"
he
said.
"Though
I
have
been
acclaimed
for
'Newton',
but
my
personally
favourite
is
'Gurgaon',"
he
added.
Terming
Uttar
Pradesh
lucky
for
him
as
two
films
-
'Bareilly
Ki
Barfi'
and
'Nil
Battey
Sannata'
-
shot
here
also
went
on
to
become
commercially
successful,
the
actor
said
it
was
during
his
stay
in
Lucknow
that
he
got
the
news
of
getting
a
Special
Mention
at
the
National
Awards.
Tripathi
was
shooting
for
Anubhav
Sinha's
"Abhi
Toh
Party
Shuru
Hui
Hai",
a
light-hearted
film
on
Indian
politics,
in
which
he
plays
a
politician.
He
will
also
be
seen
with
Rajnikanth
in
"Kala" and
is
also
working
in
Karan
Johar's
"Drive",
while
some
other
off-beat
subjects
are
also
in
the
pipeline.
(PTI
News)