‘I Needed To Deep Dive Into My Anger…’

‘I
have
achieved
a
sort
of
liberation
as
an
actor
and
as
a
person
after

Khakee:
The
Bengal
Chapter.’

Bandish
Bandits
actor

Ritwik
Bhowmik
makes
his
mark
again
in
a
completing
contrasting
role
in

Khakee:
The
Bengali
Chapter.

“I
was
always
worried
about
being
typecast
but
with
this
show,
I
have
left
behind
my
worries,”
Ritwik
tells

Subhash
K
Jha.

After
the
soft
refined
musician,
you
play
a
gangster.
How
were
you
able
to
pull
off
this
transition
so
effortlessly?

That’s
a
very
generous
compliment,
thank
you.

Growing
up
on
stage
really
helps
you
to
be
easily
moldable
in
various
shapes
and
forms.

I
guess
my
constant
need
to
offer
something
new
has
driven
me
to
go
from
Radhe
in

Bandish
Bandits
to
Sagor
in

Khakee:
The
Bengal
Chapter.

Khakee
proves
you
are
a
versatile
actor.
Do
you
feel
more
confident
about
your
skills
now?

Performing
in

Khakee
was
almost
cathartic.

The
makers
of
the
show
were
very
clear
about
how
they
wanted
to
treat
these
inhuman
characters
with
human
emotions,
so
I
needed
to
deep
dive
into
my
own
angst,
anger
and
ambition
to
bring
Sagor
to
life.

I
guess
more
than
confidence,
I
feel
I
have
achieved
a
sort
of
liberation
as
an
actor
and
as
a
person
after
this
show.

What
was
your
reaction
when
Neeraj
Pandey
offered
you
this
part?

I
was
over
the
moon
to
know
that
Neeraj
sir
and
the
makers
of

Khakee
deemed
me
fit
to
play
a
role
like
Sagor.

I
was
always
worried
about
being
typecast
but
with
this
show
and
these
makers,
I
have
left
behind
my
worries,
as
Neeraj
Pandey
saw
that
in
me
not
many
others
did.

I’ll
always
be
indebted.

How
did
you
prepare
for
your
part?

My
co-star
Aadil
(Zafar
Khan)
and
I
went
through
rigorous
workshops
and
rehearsals
to
shape
and
form
our
characters.

Our
directors
gave
us
a
free
hand
in
building
these
parts
from
the
page
and
bringing
them
to
life.

The
icing
on
the
cake
was
the
time
we
spent
in
Kolkata.

The
city,
more
than
any
workshop
or
any
rehearsal,
really
showed
us
who/how
we
should
be
to
become
Sagor
and
Ranjit.

Khakee
is
a
new
beginning
for
your
career.
How
do
you
intend
to
take
this
forward?

The
most
important
learning
that
I
have
taken
away
as
a
professional
actor
post

Khakee
is
that
I
need
to
keep
sharpening
my
skills
and
oiling
my
machinery
as
an
artist.

Everything
else
falls
into
place.

You
only
receive
what
you’re
ready
to
receive.
So
from
here
on,
I
stay
prepared
for
limitless
opportunities.

Photographs
curated
by
Satish
Bodas/Rediff.com