Still Game star Sanjeev Kohli says his character Navid Harrid wouldn’t be any different if he came from Dundee.
Kohli was in Dundee ahead of the People Huv Tae Know tour with co-stars, taking place in the city and Arbroath next month.
The 50-year-old stopped in for a chat with The Courier and said other than his voice, he wouldn’t change a thing about the cheeky shopkeeper.
He said: “I don’t think there would be a difference.
“The only difference there would be with a Dundonian Navid would be that he would go a wee bit up at the end of a sentence.
“Otherwise it would be the same level of sarcasm and arrogance, and his wife would still be running the show.”
He added: “Loads of people have asked me if Greg [Hemphill] and Ford [Kiernan] based Navid on a specific person.
“What they’ve seen is what I call the ‘phenomenon’ of the Asian shopkeeper’, when they go to poor areas and serve the community.
“We’re like the Scots of India, telling stories and jokes.”
Still Game cast visit Dundee and Arbroath for People Huv Tae Know tour
Kohli, who appeared in 52 episodes of the cult comedy, hinted at what to expect from the shows, which take place at the Whitehall Theatre and Arbroath’s Webster Theatre.
While Jack and Victor won’t be there, Kohli will be joined by co-stars Gavin Mitchell, Paul Riley, Jane McCarry and Mark Cox will be visiting Tayside as part of their People Huv Tae Know tour in November.
He said: “It’s five pals that met in Still Game and are still pals.
“We were all lucky enough to be involved in such an iconic show, I can say that objectively because I’m also a fan.
“We all knew each other from working on other shows like Chewin’ the Fat for about 25 years.
“The Scottish acting fraternity isn’t huge so you tend to bump into the same people.
“Being involved in the show and the affection of the show means that we have a load of stories to share.
“It’s great to see so many people still loving the show and knowing all the catchphrases.
“The show is on Netflix and people who weren’t even born when we started filming watch it now.
“It’s going to be fun, we love telling the stories and people love hearing about it.”
Relatability at the core
Kohli, who also plays AJ Jandhu in the BBC Scotland soap opera River City, shared his thoughts on what makes the show so relatable to its audience.
He said: “What people say to me is “I know a Boaby” or “I get called Isa at work”. Ford and Greg wrote amazing, three-dimensional characters and we were able to bring what we have to the party.
“Like drama, comedy has to tell a story, there has to be character development and a plot.
“The best dramas and comedies have truth in the heart and all the characters that are in the show have truth in the heart.
“It’s relatability and there’s also the notion of people growing old but still being humans.
“Still Game was all about showing that older people who still have sex lives, who are still rude and sarcastic, and that’s what makes it so relatable.
“Relatability is at the core of the show.”
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