<p>Abhishek Banerjee, who impressed fans with his effective performance in Stree, is gearing up for the release of the much-hyped <em>Paatal Lok.</em> Speaking exclusively to <em>DH</em>, the actor opens up about playing an intense character in the Amazon Prime Video offering and his love for Rajinikanth.</p>.<p><strong>How did <em>Paatal Lok</em> happen?</strong></p>.<p>Sudip sir (Sudip Sharma) got in touch with me after watching Stree and asked me to audition for Hathoda Tyagi. I gave it a shot and things worked out. This is quite a different character from the ones I have essayed in the past.</p>.<p><strong>How did you prepare for the show?</strong></p>.<p>I tried to understand the reasons behind the crimes (committed by the character). I also tried to figure out the socio-political aspects of Paatal Lok. The workshop organized for us helped me get drawn to the angst of the character. I also tend to rely on my gut feeling while preparing for role.</p>.<p><strong>What do you like about Anushka Sharma as a producer?</strong></p>.<p>Anushka is not calculative at all and takes up a project only because she is passionate about it. She loves choosing real subjects that are deeply rooted in Indian culture.</p>.<p><strong>How did the acting bug bite you?</strong></p>.<p>I watched (Satyajit) Ray movies as a kid but Rajinikanth was my actual first hero. <em>Arunachalam </em>was the first Rajini movie that I watched. Then there was a shift towards Bollywood after I watched Amitabh Bachchan’s <em>Hum </em>and became a Big B fan. This prompted me to take up mimicry and that’s how things started.</p>.<p><strong>Please tell us about your initial days in the industry. </strong></p>.<p>I don’t view consider them to be my struggling days as they were a part of the learning curve. I worked on casting for movies and utilized the time well.</p>.<p><strong>Do you feel you will not get wide patronage if you do dark shows in the coming days as well?</strong></p>.<p>I feel that if you do good work it will ultimately reach a wide audience. For example, if a movie does not do well in theatres it might still reach an audience on TV.</p>.<p><strong>How are you coping with the COVID-19 crisis?</strong></p>.<p>I am taking it in and trying to divert (not think about it too much) as much as possible. </p>
<p>Abhishek Banerjee, who impressed fans with his effective performance in Stree, is gearing up for the release of the much-hyped <em>Paatal Lok.</em> Speaking exclusively to <em>DH</em>, the actor opens up about playing an intense character in the Amazon Prime Video offering and his love for Rajinikanth.</p>.<p><strong>How did <em>Paatal Lok</em> happen?</strong></p>.<p>Sudip sir (Sudip Sharma) got in touch with me after watching Stree and asked me to audition for Hathoda Tyagi. I gave it a shot and things worked out. This is quite a different character from the ones I have essayed in the past.</p>.<p><strong>How did you prepare for the show?</strong></p>.<p>I tried to understand the reasons behind the crimes (committed by the character). I also tried to figure out the socio-political aspects of Paatal Lok. The workshop organized for us helped me get drawn to the angst of the character. I also tend to rely on my gut feeling while preparing for role.</p>.<p><strong>What do you like about Anushka Sharma as a producer?</strong></p>.<p>Anushka is not calculative at all and takes up a project only because she is passionate about it. She loves choosing real subjects that are deeply rooted in Indian culture.</p>.<p><strong>How did the acting bug bite you?</strong></p>.<p>I watched (Satyajit) Ray movies as a kid but Rajinikanth was my actual first hero. <em>Arunachalam </em>was the first Rajini movie that I watched. Then there was a shift towards Bollywood after I watched Amitabh Bachchan’s <em>Hum </em>and became a Big B fan. This prompted me to take up mimicry and that’s how things started.</p>.<p><strong>Please tell us about your initial days in the industry. </strong></p>.<p>I don’t view consider them to be my struggling days as they were a part of the learning curve. I worked on casting for movies and utilized the time well.</p>.<p><strong>Do you feel you will not get wide patronage if you do dark shows in the coming days as well?</strong></p>.<p>I feel that if you do good work it will ultimately reach a wide audience. For example, if a movie does not do well in theatres it might still reach an audience on TV.</p>.<p><strong>How are you coping with the COVID-19 crisis?</strong></p>.<p>I am taking it in and trying to divert (not think about it too much) as much as possible. </p>