Ignored, but irrepressible

After 13 years and 16 years respectively on the sidelines, actors Arjun Mathur and Vivek Gomber take centre stage. Is the performance-driven actor finally the star?

Nearly 13 years after assistant director Arjun Mathur started acting via a role in Mira Nair’s 2008 short film, Migration, he has stepped directly into the spotlight. The 39-year-old actor’s role in Made in Heaven even got him an Emmy nomination this year.

Meanwhile, it took Vivek Gomber 16 years to finally get to the stage in his career where filmmakers fight over him. The 42-year-old actor who began his career in 2005 with a role in the TV show Astitva Ek Prem Kahani

arrived centre stage with his acting in Is Love Enough, Sir? (2018) and production in

The Disciple (2021).

Nobody has ever said that making it as an actor is easy. But how much self-belief and patience does it really take to hit the big time? Arjun and Vivek are happy to share.

THE FIRST BREAK

Textby Karishma Kuenzang

Photos shot exclusively for HT Brunch by Prabhat Shetty Styling by Who Wore What When

“The first time I faced the camera, I was an assistant director (AD) in Kyun! Ho Gaya Na... (2004) in which I played an AD too!” says Arjun. “Then, after about five years and multiple auditions, I bagged two short films, Migration and Farhan Akhtar’s Positive.” Arjun’s first feature film was Zoya Akhtar’s Luck By Chance (2009), where he played the protagonist’s best friend.

Vivek moved to India from Singapore after studying acting in the US, to get his first break. When he acted in a play after someone dropped out, he landed the TV show in 2005.

However, he still really struggled. “I wasn’t bagging stuff and really didn’t understand how to audition. I wasn’t able to adopt