ACTS RIGHT
Paatal Lok made him a household name, but Jaideep Ahlawat still wants to push the envelope
GGrowing up in Rohtak, Haryana, Jaideep Ahlawat dreamt of joining the army. But after failing to clear the SSB (Sashastra Seema Bal) exam after several attempts, angry and frustrated, Ahlawat turned to theatre to fill the gnawing void in his life. “At the time, theatre was just a space that helped me get out of that personal quagmire. I still hadn’t thought I could be a professional actor. I was just enjoying the process and being on stage,” the 41yearold recalls.
Two decades on, Ahlawat says he still wants to “enjoy the process” when signing on fresh projects, but also wants to try “something new”. Fortunately, the Zee5 show Bloody Brothers, ticked both boxes. “It’s an intriguing script. I remember when I started reading it, I couldn’t stop. And then there was the chance to work with Zeeshan (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub) and (director) Shaad Ali.” An adaptation of BBC’s Guilt (2019), this dark comedy tells the story of how two brothers mistakenly kill an old man in an accident. “Only when we were shooting did I realise that even in a dark comedy, the characters all go through serious stuff; it is the situation that is funny for the audience.”
It has been two years since Ahlawat came into the spotlight as Hathi Ram Chaudhary, the weary and introverted policeman in Paatal Lok (2020—). “People in the industry take me more seriously now. This was one character that had all the nine rasas, so people started to believe they can bring any kind of character to me now.” Though Ahlawat insists that little has changed for him personally since Paatal Lok, he does add, “I know that beyond my circle of family and close friends, the behaviour of people has changed. They might not have talked to me before but are now interested in knowing me.”
It was 15 years ago that Ahlawat, then a fresh Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) graduate, came to Mumbai. While his early outings—Khatta Meetha (2010) and Aakrosh (2010)— failed to make an impact, it was his part in Chittagong (2012) that helped him get cast as Shahid Khan in Gangs of Wasseypur (2012).
“Manoj bhai (Bajpayee) had recommended me to Anurag Sir (Kashyap). I remember Anurag telling me that once people see the film, they’ll want to work with me. I hadn’t seen the film, so my immediate reaction was ‘really?’” Kashyap was right. Ahlawat has since played key parts in many bigticket productions like Raees (2017) and Raazi (2018).
Today, while he waits to begin shooting for director Sujoy Ghosh’s next film and for the filming of Paatal Lok’s second season to be announced, Ahlawat is hoping that directors continue to help him push the envelope as an actor. He says, “Something like (Ritwik) Bhowmik’s character in Bandish Bandit would be a huge challenge for me. It would be very difficult to play a singer, especially a classical singer on screen, if one does not have any musical talent. I would love to try something like that.” ■
JAIDEEP AHLAWAT WANTS TO ENJOY THE PROCESS OF ACTING BUT WHILE ALWAYS TRYING SOMETHING NEW