He recalls a memorable, life-changing incident: "There was an outdoor shoot for the film Shravan Kumar in Umargaon, Gujarat."
"Shantilal Soni gave me Rs 1 lakh (for it). I told him he was putting too much trust in me. 'What if I run away? You hardly know me,' I told him. But Soniji said, 'The film industry works on trust. Never break this trust'."
Those words have stayed with him all his career.
Some of his friends have not been as lucky as him. "I am sad that many of my friends with whom I began my career could not make it big."
"There was a friend who wanted to become an actor. In 1984, I told him he should quit acting and try something else. He did not listen. Even today he is struggling, trying to make ends meet. It is sad, but people just don't give up their dreams."
An office assistant interrupts us to inform him about the arrival of some height-challenged individuals for a shoot. Mangat takes a look at them and promises his assistant that he will speak to them after this interview.
His long association with Ajay Devgan came about through the star's father, Veeru Devgan.
He recalls the time Ajay made his debut with Phool Aur Kaante. "On November 22, 1991, Phool Aur Kaante was released along with Yash Chopra's Lamhe. I thought people who did not get tickets for Lamhe would watch our film. But I was proved wrong."
Phool Aur Kaante went on to become a huge hit; Lamhe flopped.
Photograph: A scene from Phool Aur Kaante
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