By Anjuri Nayar Singh

Mumbai, Apr 20 (IANS): Actor Anupam Kher has been there, done it all -- from Bollywood to Hollywood. His secret of survival over the decades, he would tell you, lies in his knack at identifying with the youth.

"I always see myself in the new people. That is why I understand them. I try to be kind and compassionate to them. I came to this city on the 3rd of June, 1981, which is 40 years back. This is a very dignified bald look. To come at a time in the early '80s, when half my hair was coming out from here and from there, and I was so thin that I could see through a keyhole with both my eyes! At that time, to dare to be an actor in cinema was unheard of," he recalls, while speaking to IANS.

He says his early struggle was tough, and he hopes no one has to go through it.

"What kept me going was that I was a gold medallist from drama school. I don't wish anyone the tough times I had, whether it was sleeping on the railway platform or not getting food. But now there are so many avenues -- TV shows, casting offices, casting directors. Back then, it was unheard of. People would tell me, 'Why don't you become a writer or an assistant director? An actor? You don't have hair!'," he recalls.

Kher was recently on the jury panel for the BAFTA Breakthrough India Initiative, which selected 10 winners from the fields of television, films and games.

Talking about the initiative, he says: "It is about talented Indian people who are recipients of this fellowship and award. That makes me feel proud, responsible and wonderful to be part of this jury."