Veteran actor Anupam Kher has opened up about a quiet but profound shift in how he approaches his craft — one marked by less anxiety, more curiosity, and a growing comfort with the unknown. In a reflective Instagram post on 25 August, Kher shared a collage of characters he has portrayed across decades of Hindi cinema, tracing his journey from the National School of Drama (NSD) to one of Bollywood's most enduring careers.

The Heart Behind the Craft

In his caption, Kher offered an unusually candid window into the emotional demands of acting. 'Actors are vulnerable people. We willingly expose emotions that most people spend their lives trying to hide. Grief, fear, jealousy, love, joy, insecurity… we have to go looking for them inside ourselves. So yes, I think actors are also very brave,' he wrote.

He was equally clear-eyed about the limits of stardom. 'Of course, acting can bring fame, money and luxury. But none of these can help you when the camera comes close and you have to reveal something truthful. For that you need craft, but you also need a certain kind of heart. Sometimes even a broken one!'

From NSD Confidence to Early Urgency

Kher recalled that his early career was driven by an almost compulsive need to stand out. Having entered the film industry without industry connections — what he described as 'no godfather' — he leaned hard on the rigorous training he received at the National School of Drama. 'Somewhere I was constantly saying, "Look what I can do. Look how different I can be,"' he noted, acknowledging that the hunger to prove himself defined much of his formative years on screen.

A Decade of Change

'Over the last ten years, something has changed. I am much more relaxed. I don't feel the same need to impress. Instead, I have started enjoying the uncertainty of a character — his silences, contradictions, weaknesses, even his foolishness. I challenge myself more now, but strangely, with much less anxiety,' Kher wrote. The shift he describes is one that many seasoned performers speak of — a transition from performance as proof to performance as exploration.

Notably, this introspection comes at a stage in Kher's career when he continues to take on varied roles across both Indian and international productions, suggesting the evolution is ongoing rather than retrospective.

Growing Older, Growing Curious

Kher closed his post with a line that doubles as a philosophy: 'Perhaps that is one of the nicer things about growing older as an actor: you stop trying to show how much you know… and start becoming curious about how much you still don't know.' He signed off by dedicating the post to the many characters who, in his words, 'each taught me something new about acting — and about myself.'

The post drew wide engagement, reflecting the enduring affection audiences and peers hold for Kher's body of work. As one of Indian cinema's most prolific character actors, his reflections carry the weight of lived experience across more than four decades on screen.