#HansalMehta directorial ‘#Scam1992’ which was based on scamster Harshad Mehta who had created havoc in the #BombayStockExchange and Indian money market. Actor #PratikGandhi played the lead character and the web series was a superhit and Pratik started enjoying star status. Pratik Gandhi has been a name to reckon with in the #GujaratiEntertainment world and had been enjoying star status there. Known to be a fabulous actor Pratik has done quite a few Gujarati films including #WrongSideRaju which won a National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Gujarati. These days Pratik is doing many Bollywood projects and his last release #MadgaonExpress got tremendous love from audience and his comic performance was hailed by viewers and critics too. He has teamed up with #VidyaBalan for #DoAurDoPyar and during the promotions of the movie, spoke at length to our Sr Editor Keerti Kadam.
What was your reaction when you got to know that Vidya Balan was also starring in Do Aur Do Pyar?
I was excited and jumped with joy. Its like you get to work with someone who you are a fan of. Even when I met her for the first time I tried to hide my excitement and nervousness. Like the producers had told me that we have to meet and take pictures together to see how we look as a pair and it was a really awkward situation for me initially. But she made me comfortable and after the start of the shoot we bonded very well.
How did this film reach you?
Tanuj and Swati who are the producers of the film, approached me. They said that it’s a Rom-Com genre movie and you might like it. Then they narrated it to me and I found out that Vidya Balan was also in it. When I heard the narration I was amazed that something like this could happen and I laughed a lot. I thought how can someone get into such a situation. First I used to feel angry but now I just feel pity for the character. But I was happy that someone thought of me for such a role. Because after doing ‘1992 Scam’ I was looking forward to do different types of movies. I have also done theatre for many years. But theatre is like a small scale industry. This is an industry where tons of money is invested and there’s large scale audience. So when someone thinks of you for a role in such film, then it’s a huge compliment. Because the actors always want to do different films but it depends on if they get it or not. And I am happy that after Scam I got films that weren’t similar to that role. I thought that I will only get roles like Harshad Mehta‘s. But I was wrong and I am happy about it.
It was fascinating how well you did in Madgaon Express. Tell us about your experience.
Just like Madgaon Express I was also praised a lot for my role in ‘Mitron’. It was a type of straight faced humour film. I have explored the genres of comedy in theatre may it be dark humour, black humour or sarcastic humour. But I had never done something like this on screen. Even in Gujarati. I think that comedy should be done with proper planning and attention. You can’t just do it any how. Otherwise it looks weird. For that you need someone with good understanding and experience in that field. And Kunal Kemmu has that. All his experienfu.helped us and it was more fun while filming. And that made the exploring more better. The situations were created in such a way that they turned into comedy. So we had to act in a very sincere way without using any punchline.
Do you think Do Aur Do Pyar type of situation happens in real life?
Ya of course. I have many friends who might be in such situation. They won’t say anything in our friends group but I am 100 percent sure they are in such situations.
It must be really difficult to be in such situations with two women, right?
Yes it’s really difficult. But still I have used whatever I learned during my theatre days. Even the reactions were not supposed to be straightforward. I had to show where exactly the fear and hesitance were coming from. So it’s not a straightforward hesitance. You hesitate when you don’t know something. So to bring out that hesitance, the theatre experience helped.
During your previous series the entire spotlight was on you as you were the main lead. Now that you have multiple leads and everyone has an equal share of spotlight, how does it feel?
I personally think that the focus depends on the story. The focus depends on the audience and what I want to convey to them and how I want to make them feel through a dialogue. That’s where you see when you want a wide shot or a two angle shot. It has a lot of artistic science behind it. So that’s how I understand it and I never think if I am a lead in it or not. Because if the film is good it also helps the small actors. But if it is bad then it won’t even benefit the main lead.
Who are the actors you look up to?
Starting from Sanjeev Kumar. He started from theatre and he is a Gujarati from my place only. He is a great comedic actor and when he acted he acted fearlessly. He also did dramatic roles so effortlessly. Even Naseer saheb (Naseeruddin Shah) acts so concisely. Even Makrand Deshpande does theatre so immaculately.
You keep doing theatre too, do you plan to just do Gujarati shows?
I am greedy so I want to explore all the genres and languages. I am doing it full-fledged. I have done a single Natak in three languages. And when I did that I understood how different it is when it comes to body language and grammar and pronunciation. So I like exploring that. I want to do it in Marathi and Telugu too. I want to explore everything. Regional is next to global. You get great stories there.
Your role in the film has comedy and romance both. So can you tell us about it?
I am playing the role of Ronny Banerjee. He is a very goofy character and thats why he finds himself in sticky situations. He doesn’t like to confront anyone so it’s basically like he wants to avoid arguments. We come across such people in reality too.
We have seen a lot of love stories nowadays so what makes DADP different?
Do Aur Do Pyar is really different. I have never seen something like this in reality. Something like this happened with my friend. He was married for 18 years. He has 12-13 year old son and he had an affair with someone and then when he went to her she left him. Now he is again living with his wife. At first I was angry but afterwards I laughed a lot realising the situation he was in. So this happens in reality too. Like whatever stories we come across in cinema are based on real life situations.
How is your experience on social media with all the trolling and stuff that happens?
I think that social media is a tool and it should be used as that only and nothing more than that. It shouldn’t be taken seriously. It’s a platform for me where I communicate with people.
Do you think is the right time for someone to start their acting career? Because nowadays scripts are given more importance than the stars.
I think this is the best time to become an actor. Nowadays even the audience tell us what they prefer and what they want to see. So according to me this is the perfect time for actors to explore different mediums.
