6 minute read
So when I was offered Special Ops 1.5, I loved it!” – Aftab Shivdasani
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A tad under-rated, Aftab Shivdasani has always proved himself as a competent actor. In fact currently, he’s garnering rave reviews for his character in Special Op 1.5. In an exclusive interview with Sumita Chakraborty, he talks about his show Special Ops 1.5, his journey and more.
You’re one of the most underrated actors in the entertainment industry but an amazing performer, why do we see so less of you on screen?
I am humbled that you think that way and thank you for your compliment. But I don’t see it this way. I like doing work that I believe in and that excites me. I want to do more work. But I have set a standard for myself which I don’t compromise on. That’s why I chose quality over quantity. I am humbled that my fans have given me so much love and respect and been with me in my journey till now. I’m hoping to do more good work.
Tell us about Special Op 1.5 and your character in it? What made you pick this show after so long, are you choosy?
I would not call myself ‘choosy’, I just prefer quality over quantity. So when I was offered Special Ops 1.5, I loved it! I always wanted to work with Neeraj (Pandey) sir – I always admired him and like everyone else who had watched Special Ops 2020, I was an admirer of the show. I sent him a message then, congratulating him and everyone else. I didn’t know at that point that I would be a part of the next one. So when I got this offer from his casting team, I was very excited.
He gave me a script to read and told me about my character, I was very excited. After that, it was a no brainer for me. I wanted to work with Neeraj sir, I wanted to work on my character. Vijay, my character will always be very special to me forever. I am grateful that people loved this character. He is nothing like that. He’s the most kindhearted, soft spoken and a simple person to talk to. That’s what connected the both of us. Working with an actor of his calibre raises your standards as well. There is so much that I have learned just being with him and spending time with him off the camera. We spent a lot of time personally as well.”
How was it working with Kay Kay Menon?
It was fab working with Kay Kay sir - he’s the most unassuming and the most down to earth person. It’s very contrary to what people think of him as one angry person to talk to who will come down heavily upon you.
Is there any special preparation that you’ve gone through to prepare for the role?
The beauty of working with somebody like Neeraj Pandey is that he beautifully covers all aspects as a writer and as an actor when you get the script and when you go through it,
there’s very little room for doubt. He’s covered much more and that makes life much easier as an actor. So when I was offered this character, everything – from the parameters to the nuances was very well-defined on paper itself. You don’t have any questions or doubts regarding it. Of course, whatever physical preparation was required for the role, I went through it – I had to look a certain way for the character to which he was instrumental in. Everything was so well defined in the script that one didn’t have to do much except just to translate what was written on paper to reality.
Special Ops has been received well and so has your character, so all your hard work has paid up, how do you feel?
Well, it’s a gratifying moment that the show has been appreciated and everybody’s hard work has paid off. We had shot during the pandemic and the amount of quarantine and safety measures we had taken to execute this, has not been easy. I don’t want to go into the details but people don’t generally see what happens behind the scenes when you work for a film or a web-series, but we were up for the challenge and we decided to give our best shot. And hats of to Friday Filmworks and Sheetal sir who seamlessly made us feel safe and so easy for us.
Coming back to the show, I’m glad people have liked the show and my character has been appreciated a lot. It’s a nice feeling and inspires me to do better work but I don’t take all this too seriously though – I just like to move on and work harder.
When you look back, how has your journey been, as an actor?
I get asked this a lot. It’s been 22 years but I don’t encapsulate it in words. It’s been an adventurous journey which has had a lot of ups and downs. It’s taught me a lot. It’s taught me to be patient. I am grateful to have got so much love and respect in my career. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I’m doing what I love most that’s all what matters to me. I love acting and I want to be in it as long as I’m alive. It’s an amazing feeling. I feel that even after 22 years there’s so much I need to achieve. In fact, I haven’t even begun as yet and I’m not saying this out of modesty. I genuinely believe this that there’s so much more for me to do. I just try to inspire myself and I hope I do justice to the work that is offered to me in the future.
There is this huge brouhaha about nepotism and insiders versus outsiders, what is your take on this?
I don’t really look at nepotism or ‘insider and outsiders’ in any way because if you are accepted by the audiences that’s the ultimate judge. I don’t care about name tags or anything else; if you are accepted by the audiences, it’s the biggest test. Every actor should put in their hard-work and sincerity... and leave it to the audience because the audience doesn’t care about your surname. You can’t influence the minds of the audience. It’s an individual’s talent and capability that ultimately matters. If you are accepted by the audience, then that’s it!
What’s next? Are there any more of your web series or films that we can look forward to seeing in the future?
I haven’t actively started shooting for anything but I am actively in discussion and I will share details once things are finalised.
