Akshay Oberoi: ‘I am a hungry actor’

Akshay Oberoi: ‘I am a hungry actor’

Akshay Oberoi has multiple projects lined up across different platforms, so he has been working non-stop for the past few months. The coronavirus lockdown has compelled him to stay home, but the actor says that he is a workaholic. 

“I think the more work I do, the more I come in front of the camera and the better I will be as an actor. I love working,” says the actor.

Recalling his journey, Akshay says, “I kept working, getting different roles, and eventually people realised, ‘Maybe his films haven’t done anything great, but he is a good actor’ (smiles). 

“Anyway, I cannot complain about it anymore. I am getting good projects, roles and people to work with. I am getting a good variety of work. But I have a long journey ahead till I become a part of bigger films and give hit films.

He adds that everyone has their own destiny, but one needs to continue working. 

Though he has done critically acclaimed projects like Laal Rang, Fitoor, Gurgaon, Kaalakaandi and others, they kept coming after a gap of a few months. What kept him going during the interval? 

Akshay admits that it took him some time to understand and analyse the graph of his career. “I used to think, ‘What’s happening with my career? Rajshri Productions have launched me, and people have appreciated my work to a great extent.’ I faced a lot of pain and rejection during those two and a half years and felt everything was going haywire. Then I realised that I shouldn’t think that way; otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to reach my destination,” he adds.

“Jabse maine acting shuru ki hai, mere andar ek jwala mukhi hai acting ko leke (From the time I started acting, I feel I have a ready-to-erupt volcano as far as acting is concerned). You also have your expectations, hopes and ambitions. I am a very hungry actor. I know, I have to reach a certain destination, and I put my entire energy into achieving that,” says the actor. 

Today, Akshay has close to eight projects in the pipeline. They include Voot Original series Illegal, web film with Disha Patani for AltBalaji, the Hindi remake of Thiruttu Payale 2, which stars Urvashi Rautela and Vineet Kumar, Amazon Original’s Inside Edge Season 3 and a few other web series.   

When he is working on multiple projects, how does he ensure that each character that he plays is different from the other? Akshay says that he does not sign a project if he doesn’t find anything new to explore. “When I read a script, the first thing that comes to my mind, ‘Have I done something like this before?’. Then, I think about the character, its backstory, and finally, its look and body language. All these things take time, but when you are doing back-to-back projects, you have to work harder,” says the actor who started his career at Prithvi Theatre with Makrand Deshpande. He adds that he is not scared to work hard and wants makers to throw more challenges at him.

Akshay, who has worked in several web series like Hum, Tum and Them, The Test Cast, Selection Day and few others, believes that because of the OTT platforms, everyone is witnessing unconventional, flawed and real characters and stories. “I have done a web series with Swara Bhaskar titled Flesh, which is produced by Siddharth Anand. I am playing a flesh trader. No other platform would have allowed me to play such a character. I am quite excited about that,” he says, adding, “People are making web series with the thought that it has to be hatke (different); otherwise no one will watch it.”

He adds that the web is giving competition to films. “Because of the OTT platform, we will see a change in our films too. In fact, we are already noticing that change with the actors and the content. Some unconventional films are being made. It’s better because as competition will become fierce, the quality will also improve,” he says. 

Talking about his next – Illegal, which stars Neha Sharma, Piyush Mishra and others is directed by Sahir Raza and written by Reshu Nath, Akshay says that it’s a law-based show, a genre rarely made in India. 

As far as his project with Disha is concerned, he says that they have taken a break from it because of the lockdown. “It’s a chic-flick written by Raaj Shandilya,” he says before signing off. 

Enjoyed reading The Bridge Chronicle?
Your support motivates us to do better. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to stay updated with the latest stories.
You can also read on the go with our Android and iOS mobile app.

Related Stories

No stories found.
logo
The Bridge Chronicle
www.thebridgechronicle.com