Actor Ritwik Bhowmik has been on a purple streak ever since playing the romantic lead in the Prime Video show Bandish Bandits in 2020. Two popular OTT films — Modern Love Mumbai and Maja Maa — followed, in 2022, and now Ritwik is back in the conversation for the Sony LIV show Jehanabad, inspired by the jailbreak event that took place at Jehanabad in Bihar in 2005.
Currently shooting for Bandish Bandits Season 2, Ritwik, who plays a professor of English in Jehanabad, spoke to The Telegraph Online on his successful stint on streaming platforms and spending time in Kolkata to get his characterisation right.
The Telegraph Online: You are having an amazing run on the streaming space with one hit show after another. What is the strategy?
Ritwik Bhowmik: (Smiles) I don’t know how I am doing it but I do think about whether I am going to watch the show or not as an audience. I am lucky and grateful that makers and directors believe that I can be a part of their world. It’s a huge compliment when a creator wants me on the show. Honestly, there is no strategy. I am going with my gut feeling and my gut has been very kind to me so far (Smiles). I am lucky that all my characters are different from each other. I hope people approach me with fresh roles and there is always an element of surprise in my characters. I hope directors look for what else I can do to bring a fresh perspective.
How did you land up in Jehanabad?
Ritwik Bhowmik: I auditioned for it at Studio NEXT. Previously, I did their show, The Whistleblower. After it was over, they shared the outline of the Jehanabad story. I did a screen test, which they liked. I am happy that they chose me. It was a one-of-a-kind experience as I visited places where I had never been. I went to five to six cities in India to shoot. The journey was long and fulfilling. The character hasn’t washed off me yet.
We don’t want to give away much about what happens in Jehanabad but tell us how you worked on the character arc and its layering as a lot unveils in the course of action…
Ritwik Bhowmik: My major preparation was reading and rereading the script. To understand the character of Abhimanyu Singh (a professor of English), I had to stick to the events in the storyline. At the same time, I had to understand Abhimanyu’s beliefs and ideologies. For me, if I had understood it, half my job was done. I have tried my best. Calcutta is my hometown. I have spent time in the city before moving to Bangalore. I visit Calcutta every year. I took the script to the city to prepare for the role. I spoke to a lot of local people. I tried to get the political essence and set it in the geography of Jehanabad.
But why Calcutta?
Ritwik Bhowmik: I am a Bengali. I prepped in Calcutta because a lot of things that the show is talking about and those conversations happen very actively in the city. I wanted to be a part of those dialogues and understand it. I took the research and put it in the geography of Jehanabad, Patna and Delhi, where Abhimanyu Singh comes from.
Your character is not what he projects himself to be and has a journey of his own. How did you internalise it while playing it?
Ritwik Bhowmik: What I understood is the psychology of the character and I started filling the gap between Abhimanyu and Ritwik. I tried to find the similarities between the two but there was no fixed formula. The audience should expect the unexpected. When you expect us to drown you with emotions, we will do so and when you expect power-packed action, we will give you more. There is more to everything when you think we are at the peak of it. We give you more drama.
After Naseeruddin Shah in Bandish Bandits and Madhuri Dixit and Gajraj Rao in Maja Ma, you got a chance to work with a set of experienced actors yet again with Jehanabad. What was your takeaway?
Ritwik Bhowmik: It was fantastic! I learnt from Suneel (Sinha), Rajat Kapoor, Satyadeep (Misra), and Parambrata (Chattopadhyay), who is one of my favourites. I am so glad to have shared screen space with Parambrata. I am ecstatic because I have watched his work for so long and have admired him so much. My parents were so happy to know that I have worked with him. It’s an honour. I have told him this before, but he smirks and brushes it off. (Smiles) I call him dada. It's a dream come true to have worked with him.
