‘I Want To See Myself As What Johnny Depp Does’

‘I
don’t
think
I
ever
lost
the
confidence
as
an
actor.’

Remember
that
teenager
who
romanced
Manisha
Koirala
in
the
bold
and
controversial
film

Ek
Chhotisi
Love
Story?

Well,
he’s
all
grown
up
now,
and
is
seeing
success
as
an
actor.

Aditya
Seal
has
been
a
part
of
films
like

Amar
Prem
Ki
Prem
Kahani
and

Khel
Khel
Mein
after
his
career
got
a
boost
with

Student
Of
The
Year
2.

“My
father
was
the
one
who
showed
me
the
door
to
acting.
He
said
if
this
is
something
you
want
to
pursue,
I’m
going
to
pursue
it
with
you.
He
would
knock
on
doors
and
go
and
meet
people
who
were
casting
randomly,
enter
their
offices
and
speak
to
them,”
Aditya
tells

Mayur
Sanap/Rediff.com.

Mainstream
actors
would
be
wary
of
doing
a
queer-centric
project.
As
an
actor,
is
there
anything
specific
that
you
were
looking
to
do
with
this
film?

I
take
it
up
as
a
challenge.
Honestly,
I
enjoy
doing
a
lot
of
different
things.

I
started
with

Tum
Bin
II,
where
I’ve
been
a
sweet
guy,
you
know,
a
lover
boy.

Then
I
played
a
negative
role
in

Student
of
the
Year
2/

I’ve
been
in

Indoo
Ki
Jawani,
and
then
I
played
Humayun
(The
Empire).

In

Khel
Khel
Mein,
I
played
a
North
Indian
dude
who’s
like
a
sort
of
angry
person.

I
enjoy
doing
a
lot
of
different
things.

You
fall
in
love
with
a
man
in

Amar
Prem
Ki
Prem
Kahani.
What
got
you
excited
about
its
storyline?

I
felt
this
is
a
story
which
needs
to
be
told.

I’ve
seen
a
lot
of
films
where
they
show
the
struggle
that
the
(LGBTQ)
community
goes
through,
and
the
struggle
is
absolutely
real.

I
personally
know
a
lot
of
friends
who
have
faced
discrimination.
Here,
I
thought
we’d
try
and
show
a
world
where
we
go
one
step
beyond
the
acceptance.

Yes,
you
have
been
accepted,
now
what’s
next?
(The
film
shows)
how
we
celebrate
that,
so
I
thought
it
was
a
fresh
take.

How
was
your
working
relationship
with
co-star
Sunny
Singh
in
navigating
those
complex
and
cutesy
moments
in
their
relationship?
Were
there
any
awkward
moments?

Weirdly
enough,
I
was
expecting
awkwardness,
but
there
wasn’t.

The
ice-breaker
was
that
Sunny
and
I
used
to
live
literally
three
minutes
away
from
each
other
in
JB
Nagar
(Andheri,
north
west
Mumbai)
for
the
majority
of
our
lives.

We
met
on
the
sets
of

Amar
Prem
and
would
talk
about
those
days,
what
we
used
to
eat
there,
the

vada-pav
stall,
the

pani-puri
stall,
the
best
sandwich…

We
used
to
work
with
the
same
gym
trainer,
and
we
didn’t
even
know.

So
it
became
an
easy
bond
because
we
had
many
things
in
common.

Also,
he’s
a
very
easy
dude,
no
complexes.

It’s
very
easy
to
be
friends
with
Sunny.

I
called
him
up
two
days
ago
for
his
birthday
and
he
was
in
Goa.
Tomorrow,
we
are
supposed
to
go
for
a
drive
in
his
new
car.

Do
you
think
a
film
like
this
would
pave
the
way
for
more
progressive
content
in
Hindi
space?

It
is
important
for
people
to
understand
that
these
are
humans
as
well,
and
that
this
is
a
daily
struggle
for
them.
It
is
not
something
they
go
through
once
in
a
while.

It’s
daily
discrimination,
and
a
daily
fight.

I’m
not
even
saying
it’s
the
reality
of
the
world
today.
Homosexuality
has
been
around
for
eons.

I
think
it’s
a
story
that
needs
to
be
said
and
for
people
to
understand
and
respect
them
and
give
them
rights.

There’s
a
line
in
the
film:
‘Itna
sochega
toh
jeeyega
kab?
‘.
What
was
the
moment
in
your
life
when
you
said
that
to
yourself?

Kaam
ko
leke
hi
tha
(It
was
related
to
work
only).

There
have
been
things
that
I
would
have
wanted
to
do
far
better.

But
I
would
start
going
down
a
rabbit
hole,
thinking
this
is
maybe
not
meant
for
me
or
that
I
should
do
something
different.

Then,
once
I
just
sat
back
and
said
to
myself,
listen
my
work
was
good
and
everybody
appreciated
it.

The
thing
is,
I
stopped
enjoying
the
process
of
doing
things
because
I
would
worry
about
the
result.

So
I
said
to
myself,
shut
up
and
enjoy
what
you
do.

You
started
your
career
with

Ek
Chhotisi
Love
Story,
which
was
quite
a
bold
and
edgy
experiment.
How
did
that
film
happen
to
you?

Ek
Chhotisi
Love
Story
was
a
great
incident.

I
auditioned
for
the
film
and
started
shooting
the
next
day.
It
was
that
quick.

The
set
was
ready,
and
I
didn’t
have
time
to
know
about
the
story.

I
didn’t
know
what
the
story
was
until
I
watched
the
film.

So
I
didn’t
choose
the
subject,
the
subject
chose
me.

You
barely
had
a
career
after
that
even
though
the
film
got
so
much
attention.
What
were
you
doing
during
all
those
years?

Well,
I
was
really
young.
I
must
have
been
13
or
14
in
2002,
so
it
didn’t
make
much
of
a
difference
in
my
life.

I
wasn’t
actively
looking
for
work
after
that.

But
I
kept
training
myself.

Gradually,
I
started
getting
work
here
and
there.

Then
there
was
a
film
which
came
in
my
kitty,

Tum
Bin
II.
Unfortunately,
just
a
week
before
the
release
of
the
film,
demonetisation
happened
and
the
film
went
unnoticed.

That
was
a
very
tough
time
because
I
had
a
lot
of
expectations.

Anubhav
Sinha
sir
was
directing
the
film,
T-Series
was
the
producer,
the
songs
were
good,
expectations
were
high.
But
it
didn’t
click.

It
took
me
some
time
to
understand
and
I
don’t
think
I
dealt
with
it
the
right
way.

I
would
wake
up
late
so
that
my
father
would
have
left
for
work.

I
would
leave
home
and
not
come
back
until
my
parents
were
asleep.

I
think
that
was
my
defensive
mechanism
to
not
face
reality.
I
was
just
running
away.

My
father
sat
me
down
one
day
and
said,
you
know
you
were
good
in
the
film,
I
want
you
to
continue
what
you’re
doing
because
you
will
get
your
due.

That
was
the
only
assurance
I
needed.

I
just
needed
somebody
close
to
me
to
tell
me
that
I
was
good
in
the
film.

Since
then,
I
did
not
stop.
Failures
did
happen
after
that
too,
but
I
did
not
stop.

Is
it
true
that
you
wanted
to
become
a
cricketer?

Yes.
I
even
started
training
for
cricket.

I
was
pretty
good
at
it.
I
used
to
play
at
the
Air
India
ground
in
Kalina
(north
west
Mumbai).

And
then
one
injury
happened.
It
wasn’t
even
an
injury,
my
height
just
shot
up
and
this
bone
under
my
knee
sort
of
popped
out.
Anything
that
could
even
touch
that
bone
would
send
me
rolling
on
the
floor
in
pain.

My
father
was
the
one
who
showed
me
the
door
to
acting.
He
said
if
this
is
something
you
want
to
pursue,
I’m
going
to
pursue
it
with
you.

He
would
knock
on
doors
and
go
and
meet
people
who
were
casting
randomly,
enter
their
offices
and
speak
to
them.

Do
you
discuss
projects
with
your
wife
Anushka?
Does
she
give
you
her
inputs?

She
prefers
to
be
surprised
by
what
I
do.
She
obviously
knew
my
character
in

Amar
Prem,
but
didn’t
know
what
the
story
was.

She
had
no
idea
what

Khel
Khel
Mein
was
about.

But
if
there
is
something
I
am
confused
about,
whether
I
should
be
doing
a
project
or
not,
then
her
opinion
really
matters
to
me.

What
did
she
think
of

Amar
Prem
Ki
Prem
Kahani?

She
loved
it.
She
was
very
proud
of
the
portrayal
of
the
character.

She
was
extremely
happy
with

Khel
Khel
Mein
and
pleasantly
surprised
with
how
it
turned
out.

The
biggest
film
in
your
career
so
far
is

Student
of
the
Year
2.
Are
you
still
in
touch
with
Karan
Johar?
Do
you
seek
career
advice
from
him?

Of
course,
I’m
still
in
touch
with
him.
But
every
decision
that
I’ve
taken
has
been
mine.

I
don’t
involve
a
lot
of
people
in
my
decisions
because
I
don’t
want
to
have
any
regrets
that
I
did
this
because
somebody
else
told
me
and
it
failed.

I
am
okay
if
a
project
doesn’t
live
up
to
my
expectations
but
it
has
to
be
my
decision.

Does
the
lack
of
good
opportunities
make
an
actor
bitter
in
some
way?

That
was
the
case
earlier.
But
OTT
has
taken
over
our
lives
in
such
a
way
that
I
don’t
think
there’s
lack
of
work.

So
many
new
actors
have
been
introduced.

I
don’t
think
you
should
be
bitter
at
all.

It’s
just
about
being
in
the
right
place
at
the
right
time
and
then
doing
your
best.

This
is
such
a
competitive
industry.
How
difficult
is
to
make
your
mark?

It
is
difficult
because
you
never
know
what
works
for
the
audience.

Just
one
song
can
do
the
job
for
you.

Like
for
me,

Bad
Newz
was
all

Tauba
Tauba.
Vicky
Kaushal,
of
course,
was
a
star
before
that,
but
now
I
think
people
see
him
in
a
far
different
light
than
what
they
did
before
that
song.

I’m
a
little
surprised
with
the
amount
of
love
I’m
receiving
for

Amar
Prem
Ki
Kahani.
I’ve
received
at
least
350
messages
on
my
Instagram
till
now.

2024
is
turning
out
to
be
a
good
one
for
you
with
both

Khel
Khel
Mein
and

Aman
Prem
Ki
Kahani
releasing
back
to
back.
Do
you
think
you
are
finally
finding
your
place
in
Bollywood?

I
don’t
think
I
ever
lost
the
confidence
as
an
actor.

Any
producer
or
director
I
have
worked
with,
they
wanted
to
do
multiple
projects
with
me.
That
just
says
I
am
decent
at
what
I
do.

I
want
to
see
myself
as
what
Johnny
Depp
does.
He
plays
a
character
and
makes
the
character
a
superstar.
That
is
what
I
want
to
do.

I
would
love
to
play
characters
and
be
recognised
as
a
star
for
playing
those
characters.