Abhishek Banerjee made his acting debut way back in 2006 with the Aamir Khan-starrer Rang De Basanti. Even though he played small roles in a handful of movies after that, including Bombay Talkies and Go Goa Gone, it wasn’t until 2018 that his acting prowess surfaced. As the small-town simpleton Jana in the 2018-released Stree, Abhishek made such an impact that there has been no looking back since.
What followed was a slew of projects that churned memorable characters — Compounder from Mirzapur and Hatoda Tyagi from Paatal Lok to name a few. One of his recent releases — Vedaa — also starring John Abraham and Sharvari, earned the actor accolades as he terrorizes as Jitendar Pratap Singh, the village chief. In an exclusive interview with Connected to India, Abhishek revealed why Singh’s character is so close to his heart and how did a Kolkata-boy without a filmy background made it to the silver screens.
Abhishek terms his character from Vedaa, which is streaming on ZEE5 Global, as an upgrade from his previous works. “I think for
the first time, I was trying something more mature,” he said. The actor added that he played a man “rather than a boy” for the first time.
One of the key things that drew him to the project was the desire to work with Nikhil Advani, who he hailed a one of India’s “edgiest” directors.
The actor said when Advani narrated the script and told him that he wanted the former for the role of Singh, he was surprised. Abhishek said he was a little intimidated acting opposite “one of India’s biggest action stars” John Abraham. When he shared his doubts, Advani told him: “I just need you, I need your eyes, I need your voice, I need your acting. So, I don’t need your muscles.”
Watch the Spotlight interview below.
