Growing up in Delhi, Amol Parashar was already on an enviable trajectory in life after completing his graduation from the esteemed IIT Delhi and landing a cushy job. A chance encounter with the world of theatre opened his eyes and he started dreaming – of a world beyond nine-to-five jobs, salaries, and perks. Little did he know then, that one day, he would be rubbing shoulders with the best in the acting industry and becoming a celebrity himself! Today, this Dilli-da-munda has managed to leave an indelible mark on people’s hearts with his performance in TVF Tripling as the cool and adorable Chitvan. His performances in Traffic, Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare, and the recently-released Feels Like Ishq have been appreciated by critics and audiences alike. In the pipeline is his role as the leading man in a Vishesh Films project and playing freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in Shoojit Sircar’s much-anticipated Sardar Udham Singh among others. The talented actor chatted with TMM about his passion for the craft of acting and his future projects.
From an engineer to becoming one of the most familiar faces on our screens, does it feel surreal to be where you are?
Surreal or not, it was not an easy thing to imagine. To think that one day I would be famous or meeting big filmmakers and shooting with them – it was more a fantasy than anything else. The OTT platforms didn’t exist when I started and we didn’t have the kind of opportunities we have now. Thanks to this new medium, a number of us have got the chance to showcase our talent. Thankfully, we are out of that loop where we used to wait for the phone to ring. There was a time when a call from an unknown number would make us happy because it meant the possibility of work. Now when it’s a call from an unknown number, I don’t even pick it up! (laughs) That’s something I never imagined.
You moved to Mumbai for work. Tell us about your initial years of living in this city?
I developed an interest in theatre while I was doing engineering in IIT and I missed being on stage when I moved to Pune for my job. When I came to Bombay, it was a well-thought-out decision that I am leaving a secure job with its perks in order to do theatre and that we all know, is not enough to sustain oneself. I thought I would be able to survive on my savings for at least a year but that money lasted just three months! (laughs) Many times, we would survive on chai and vada pav but I never felt bad about it because it was a choice I had made. Thankfully, some corporate plays or some writing projects would come along. There would be some motivation. There was a time I had four different plays running at Prithvi Theatre in one week. I did a few ads and those too helped run the kitchen.
Aspiring actors come to this city with dreams of getting launched as heroes in movies. You started your Bollywood journey with a small role in Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year…
I didn’t come to Bombay with that dream. I wanted to do theatre. Then someone or the other would take me along for an audition and I would go because I found that world so exciting. It was a sense of discovery and fun. A similar thing happened with Rocket Singh. Somebody called me for an audition and five days later, I was standing next to Ranbir Kapoor and there was a puja happening and Yash Chopraji was feeding me nariyal with his own hands! It was all like a bonus. It was after two-three years of doing theatre and some shows that I sat down to ask myself, what is it that I really want to do and the answer was, I wanted to continue being part of this industry. It is after that day that I started chasing my dreams. That was the time I really started putting an effort into my work.
How did TVF Tripling come your way?
I spent two or three years in that serious mode. Just before Tripling, there was a phase of a couple of months where nothing was working out. Projects would start and get shelved for some or the other reason. I knew the TVF guys. We would hang out and somewhere, a conversation began about making something together. Web shows/web series were not common that time. We didn’t even know how to use the platform well but it just felt like an interesting thing to be part of.
You character Chitvan in Tripling became so popular for his cool swag and easy-going manner. From Chitvan to playing the intense and simple Usman in Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare, how was the experience?
Tripling came out in 2016 and then I did a couple of web shows after that, which were in similar territory. It takes somebody with a vision to imagine you differently and then convince you that you can do it. It was true for Chitvan as well as for Usman. After a character like Chitvan, for a filmmaker to say that you are my Usman, that shows a lot of faith and imagination. When a person shows faith, you respond to that faith. I knew Usman is a completely different guy from the last character people remember me for. I knew Chitvan will be fresh in people’s minds. What I didn’t know was that I will be shooting Tripling 2 while I was playing Usman! (laughs) It was a surreal experience switching between these two very different guys.
You mentioned how you started chasing the dream once you decided to become serious about your profession. Can you tell us what the dream is now?
In life and in your profession, you are happy when you’re doing better than how you were doing earlier. For me, better would be to try and do a variety of roles, characters that are vastly different from each other. That is when I can say, ‘mazaa aa gaya!’. It happened with Chitvan and it happened with Usman. Now, that’s something I am experiencing with Jay in Feels Like Ishq. The response I received gave me the happiness that I was able to do justice to the role and be a part of a project I enjoyed. I was able to live up to the faith the director showed in me. And that’s what I hope to continue to do.
