Congratulations for Panchayat. What’s the response been like so far?
People are talking about how fresh the show is. It’s a fun and light-hearted show… there’s no darkness in there, and I think it’s an apt show for this time when the country is under lockdown. I have received a lot of warm messages.
You are the Everyman of the Indian web space. Do you naturally get attracted to rooted and slice-of-life characters?
Most of the shows that are offered to me have characters that are in the relatable space, mostly slice-of-life and light-hearted shows. Main hamesha try karta hoon ki set-up alag ho. Panchayat has a completely different milieu. Most of my shows have shown the transition of a character from a small town to the big city. In Panchayat, it’s the opposite… it shows how a middle-class, urban banda struggles when he moves to a village and tries to adjust to the kind of life there. In most streaming shows and films today, you will not really see a story set in the village… it probably happened way back in the ’90s.
Also, the show creates a new perception about the concept of panchayat. For most of us, a panchayat would mean a couple of old men sitting under a bargad ka ped (banyan tree) and solving matters related to property and land. In reality, the panchayat office is a proper office, things are well documented… sirf hawa mein baatein nahi hoti hain (laughs). There are different teams that work on different issues related to the village. We’ve tried to show all that in Panchayat. We don’t really get a chance to visit villages and this show will present a different side from what we have been seeing in recent films… yahaan pe koi guns ya goliyaan nahin hain… koi kisi ko nahin maar raha hain! (Laughs) Hasi-mazaak waali, daily life ki baatein hoti hain iss show mein. At a time when people’s spirits are generally low, this show will perk them up. People have gone back to watching Ramayan and Mahabharat… it shows that they are looking for nostalgia as well as feel-good material in these times.
Given that you’ve played some very popular characters, including Jeetu Bhaiya in Kota Factory, is the audience able to separate you from the men you play on screen?
Actually, no. Everyone thinks I am exactly like the characters I play. All the characters I have played so far have been relatable, so that could be one reason. A friend just told me that his mom had texted him saying, ‘Screen pe, Jeetu aisa lagta hai ki apna hi beta ho’. So this is the emotion that remains uppermost on people’s minds when it comes to me and they are unable to differentiate between the real and the reel. That could happen to anyone who is a staunch fan. Like growing up, I felt that Michael Jackson would dance for all the hours that god gave in a day! (Laughs) Fan ka matlab hi paagalpan hain (laughs).
Do you look at it as an advantage or a disadvantage?
It’s definitely not a disadvantage for me. If people know an actor by his character’s name, then that’s a big achievement. Thoda bahut typecasting ka darr aa sakta hain, something which I felt about two years ago when I was being offered the same kind of roles. I am aware I will continue to be offered such roles for a while now and it’s up to me to do them with 100 per cent truth and honesty. This, in itself, is a challenge… to kind of do the same thing differently. Going forward, I will definitely do different kinds of roles… larger-than-life characters, those with dark overtones…. It will take time, but it will happen for sure.
How much has Bollywood opened up for you after the success of Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan?
When I first came to Bombay, I came in wanting to be a film actor. Before Shubh Mangal, I had a film called Gone Kesh and now there’s another film I am acting in that will release this year. After Shubh Mangal, a lot more people know me and producers are more aware of me. I will definitely be happier seeing myself on the big screen, but then again the entertainment scape is rapidly changing. I am glad I am a part of this change.