Why, someone wanted to know, did Kabir Bedi get caught up in rank bad films along with all the great work he's known for abroad?

Down in Goa for the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), Bedi said people do films "for all kinds of reasons".

"Sometimes you do it just for the cash. Sometimes you just get caught in bad films (without realising it). 'Octopussy', the Bond film, was such a silly thing... but it was a Bond film! There are things you do for strategic reasons," he said.

He plays Mo (Mohan Dagga), an expatriate Punjabi bankrupt businessman, in the Baz Taylor film, "Take 3 Girls", about rappers and the sub-culture of British youth who speak a language the others don't understand.

Bedi added, not without a tinge of pride: "Survival and learning continuously along the way are my reasons for being here. At my age you realise, it's a long-term marathon, not just a 100-metre dash. It's about long-term survival, and I've managed to survive on three continents."