I've set my own standards, says Mithun

In the same breath, he adds with fatherly pride, "It was his mother who told me that he wanted to be an actor. When I first saw him dancing it was horrible. But he's now trained himself in dance, acting and action." The three things that his father excelled at, among other things.

Chakraborty is back now with Kalpana Lajmi's Chingaari, which the actor feels "is one more feather in my cap". The film, which also stars Sushmita Sen, releases this Friday. "North Pole and South Pole," is how he describes his character Bhuvan Panda, a village priest. "It is a very complex character. On one hand, he is a priest and on the other hand he is a human being passionately in love with a sex worker," says Chakraborty.

It is not a totally negative character, he feels. "He loves Basanti (Sushmita), but when it comes to her paying respect to God, he does not allow her in the temple. Such is his passion for her that he even kills her lover. And then there is that spark - the Chingaari," says the National-Award winning actor who has never shied away from variety. "I have set my own standards, doing mainstream as well as off-beat films," he says.

Hypocrisy is what the film shows through the character of Bhuvan. "We love to eat mutton, but before we do, we put a tikka on our forehead," says Chakraborty. "Bhuvan is a businessman and politician and the village folk are scared of him," he adds.

Working with Kalpana and Sushmita has been a revelation as far as Chakraborty is concerned. "She has always made women-centric films. And to play such a role in a woman-centric film like Chingaari has been extremely satisfying," says Chakraborty.

He has special praise for Sushmita. "She stands out. I knew she is glamorous actor or former Miss Universe but on the sets, it was only Basanti and no one else. I saw only Basanti in her," says Chakraborty, who stars in Rohit Nayyar's Sun Zarra, which is slated for release soon. Also awaiting release is Buddhadeb Dasgupta's Kaalpurush with Rahul Bose and Sameera Reddy. He is in Aaditya Datt's Dil Diya Hai too.