What is the concept of the show ‘My Name Ijj Lakhan'?
Can you give us a background of the show?
It is about a
guy, Lakhan, played by me, who is a local gunda
working for a bigger don. He is completely convinced with the fact that this is
the way to live his life. However, due to a sudden incident in his life, that
completely changes. From there on, it’s
the journey of how he starts to change as a person, along with the things he
has to go through and the people he meets during the entire change over. So
that journey of how he deals with things in his own manner, is extremely fascinating
and that is what really appealed to me, making it the reason I agreed going
ahead with the show.
Tell us something about your character and look on
this show.
My character,
Lakhan, is the protagonist and has got some basic fundamental differences with
his father on how one should be leading his/her life. He feels that in today’s
time it is about the survival of the strongest. Hence, you need to be powerful
in order to survive in this world, for which you can take any route, any means,
and do whatever seems correct to you at that point of time. The father,
however, is a school teacher with his own set of rules and values, wanting his
son to adopt the same. Thus, the creative differences between the two are the
reason for the conflict.
My look in the
show is not of the very typical Gunda
that we have seen in films or shows. Rather, he is like today’s ‘Mumbai guy’.
Lakhan, though being a goon, has a heart of gold and an up-to-date fashion
sense. With this being said, his lingo is going to be a little off from the way
he dresses up. What I really liked about Lakhan was his flamboyance and his
swag. His character is someone who, has some part of goodness and some part of
evil inside of him, and this is true about every one of us. So, at times, you
would feel that whatever he is doing is the right thing to do at that point in
time, though his father disagrees with these aspects of his character.
What took you so long to come to television?
Actually, if we
look at it the other way, then television has taken a long time to come to me
with a show like this.
Why My Name Ijj Lakhan?
Because of the
way this show is. Had someone come to me with a show like My Name ijj Lakhan, I
would have made by Hindi television debut earlier. So, right now I think it’s
just a change of perspective. Like, when on a road, a car is travelling from
point A to point B, if you look at it from one side, you say the car is coming.
Whereas, when you look at it from the other end, you would say the car is
going. The same way, I would probably say that it’s a comeback of television
because of the kind of competition that is right now from web platforms and
films. They are, thus, coming up with various formats and this is one format
that I really liked, which is of a limited series. It’s a finite series with 29
episodes and a fantastic concept, written amazingly. Also, obviously, a great
character to portray on screen. I am an actor, you come to me with such
characters, I would be more than happy. I have never really been bothered about
the language and the medium, as long as the character is appealing.
What would you prefer? Films or Television?
I guess I’ll
just go with acting. So, whoever offers me the best part, wins the race.
Have you started shooting?
We haven’t
started shooting the series yet. We have just shot a promo and a photoshoot.
However, I guess, we will start shooting soon in the first week of Jan.
What, according to you, is Lakhan’s way of life?
Lakhan is pretty
straightforward guy. Like I said, he has got his own set of rules and is very
convinced about them. First and foremost being that only the most powerful will
survive. He knows he needs to be powerful as there are people who would cheat
and get their way through in life.
I feel this is
very relevant to the actual scenario as you are taught a basic set of rules and
ethics, right from school. However, when you go out in the real world, you
notice certain people doing exactly the opposite, which then creates a conflict
of what is correct - what we learnt from
childhood or what such people have been doing? Lakhan, unfortunately has taken
the other route. He feels that being a goon and fighting, is the way of life
and only then can you survive, which is not true. At the end of the day,
somewhere Lakhan also feels that something is not right. And that’s where the
changeover starts, without him realizing. So, I feel we need to focus more on
the goodness that each one of us has, making sure that it’s the good that wins
in the end.
Do you watch Sony SAB?
I do. Actually
one of my favourite shows is Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah. To be honest,
there aren’t much shows or channels that I watch. But if you ask me about Sony
SAB, then a little of Aladdin and a whole lot of Taarak Mehta is what I watch.
Have you seen Ram Lakhan? Is your look inspired by
Lakhan?
Yes, you can say
that. When you say Lakhan, you immediately think of Anil sir in the movie Ram
Lakhan. His look in the film was with moustache like the one in our show. For
me, it was a new look to try out and no better show than ‘My Name Ijj Lakhan’
to execute that on.
You started your career with Marathi television. So
which one between Hindi and Marathi television is the better one?
I started my
career with theatre, moving on to Hindi TV with smaller roles. I then moved on
to Marathi Television with some bigger roles. Today, the reach and popularity
that TV has is immense. So, whether it is Marathi or Hindi, the whole line
between films and TV, and now web, is probably no more. Each one of these
platforms is not only putting in money but a lot of efforts to make sure the
get those eyeballs.
How are you managing between television and films?
I think where
there is will, there is a way. I have usually seen this one thing that people
have dates and time for what they want to do and for something that they don’t
want to take up, they have this issue that “Sorry
Yaar dates nahi hain”. So, if you want to do something, you will make sure
that you manage everything and do it.
You have recently embraced parenthood. How has the experience
been so far?
It has been
really wonderful, to say the least. A lot of my friends and relatives kept
asking me to try this this life changing experience, however, I didn’t really
feel ready for it. But later, finally came a time when I was ready for it. I’m
loving every moment of it, although I never thought it would be this wonderful
to see your child grow. There are these little things that she starts to
recognize, reacts to people and every day is a new experience for me. She is
actually the one teaching me a lot of things like being more calm,
understanding and patient.
Now that you have done your debut on television, would
we be seeing you more often on this platform?
I was always
willing to do more of television. I have done Marathi daily soaps before coming
into films but there came a point where I decided to quit doing daily soaps
because I couldn’t take the pressure, which was immense. People think I quit TV
because I got into films, however that is not that scenario. I was sitting at
home for almost 3 years before I got into films, even when I had offers for
daily soaps. That was a time when people had suddenly started doing just daily
soaps and there was no concept of finite series. Hence, being in the same line,
I had started to feel that I am not in the right profession and that is when I
quit doing Television, luckily getting into films. So, I would have been happy
to do a finite series earlier and going forward if people come to me with
something like this, I would love to be a part of it.
Have you done any special preparation for the role of
Lakhan?
I have just
grown my moustache for now, nothing apart from it. Naseeruddin Shah Sir once
told me a very good thing – “For a singer, his riyaaz starts when he takes out his instrument but for an actor, riyaaz begins when he opens his eyes in
the morning and it goes on till the time he sleeps at night.” So every little
thing that you observe, you try to include in your work and this is the same
case with the character of Lakhan. The mannerisms of some taporis that I have
observed in the past, is something that I will be incorporating here.
Have you done the Lakhan dance?
Not yet. But I
guess we will be doing it very soon because that is the trademark step, which I
don’t think we should be missing out on!
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