A known face in Gujarati theatre and film scene, Pratik Gandhi has also done a few Hindi and English language films. But it’s his portrayal of stockbroker Harshad Mehta in Hansal Mehta’s recent web series, Scam 1992, that has made him a nationwide sensation. Social media is flooded with praises for his acting prowess and Gandhi falls short of words talking about this overwhelming response.
“The actual reaction came from the share market. People called in to say that the portrayal couldn’t been more convincing. I’m indebted to Hansal Mehta for showing this kind of faith in me,” says the actor.
Gandhi adds that reason narrative of the series could flourish so well is because of the kind of scope web offers. “There’s no particular format to be followed, no time limit and no pressure of how many tickets being sold on the web. So, those working in front and behind the camera are enjoying this creativity. Audience too get a lot of time with characters and stories,” he explains.
Given the response, the actor also believes that the timing worked in their favour as people are mostly consuming content online.
“I don’t think I’d have got this kind of a role in a big film or a film could have given me this kind of fame, space and global exposure that OTT did. I never understood how do we decide a film to be good or bad going by the revenue generated. Thankfully, OTT doesn’t have that sort of pressure. You don’t need a known face to sell content, rather content decides everything,” he adds.
Reacting to all the fame and love coming his way, Gandhi shares that he has been around in showbiz for almost two decades, and it’s only that things have changed for him.
“People now want to know about me but I’ve been around for last 15 years. So, when I’m told that this has happened to me overnight, my reply is that ‘This night was 15 years long for me’. Now, many doors have opened. Yes, I’d like to do pivotal parts but I’m open to all kinds of experiments. So, a strong supporting part also would be good,” he shares.
While getting into the mainstream Bollywood space would have been otherwise difficult for an outsider, the web has definitely given Gandhi an upper hand.
“Now proper script narrations are happening, people want to work with me, characters are conceived keeping me in mind. All this feels surreal. In Bollywood, the mechanism is different. I really don’t know how and who to approach,” he says.
While he’s eyeing Bollywood, Gandhi, for the time being, is happy doing web. “I don’t know how many people would like to go and watch films in theatre though I’m also looking forward the 70mm experience that brought me to Mumbai and would love to work on it. But, for now, my concentration is on web given the kind of offers I’m getting,” he concludes.
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Author tweets @Shreya_MJ
