Mumbai, August 22
Actor Abhishek Banerjee, who is receiving praise for his roles in both Stree 2 and Vedaa, shared how he secured these contrasting roles.
Both films, which were released on August 15, feature Banerjee in very different characters.
In a conversation with ANI, Abhishek spoke about his journey with Stree 2.
Directed by Amar Kaushik, Stree has been a successful franchise, and Banerjee revealed how he initially got involved.
"Amar Kaushik ji is one of the most visionary filmmakers of our time. I was always too shy to approach big directors, but one day, I told him to keep me in mind for a role in his future projects. After watching my performance as a dark villain in a film directed by Devashish Makhija, Amar ji complimented me, saying I reminded him of Amrish Puri ji. That was a huge compliment for me. Later, when Stree was being made, I reminded him about giving me a role."
When it came to casting for Stree 2, Amar Kaushik offered Abhishek the role of Jana. However, Abhishek was initially hesitant.
"He offered me the role of Jana. I refused at first because I'm from Delhi, and I usually look for roles with a bit of attitude, like the one in Vedaa. But Amar ji saw something in me that I hadn't noticed--a goofiness and sweetness. He insisted I play Jana, and that's how I got the opportunity to portray such a wonderful character."
On the other hand, Abhishek also shared his experience of landing a role in Vedaa, where he stars alongside John Abraham.
"I wanted to work with Nikkhilji for many years. I had met him at some events as well. When I met him, I told him that I wanted to discuss work and asked him to invite me to his office sometime. He said he would, but he never did. Then I met him somewhere else and reminded him again. I guess I left an impression, and he eventually called me. It was a Sunday, and there was no one in his office. I felt like he was just like me because I can't sit idle either--I always want to be working. That's when he told me the story of Vedaa, and I felt like I had to do this film," he said.
"Standing alongside a big action star like John Abraham on screen is a huge responsibility. I didn't want the audience to feel like the villain was weak or disappointing. I saw this as both a great learning opportunity and a big challenge, to convince the audience that I could overpower John's character, even without building a big physique," he added.
'Vedaa' features John Abraham and Sharvari in lead characters. Directed by Nikkhil Advani and written by Aseem Arrora, 'Vedaa' is produced by Zee Studios, Umesh Kr Bansal, Monisha Advani, Madhu Bhojwani, John Abraham, and co-produced by Minnakshi Das.
On the other hand, Abhishek plays the role of Jana in 'Stree 2'. He is joined by Rajkummar Rao, Aparshakti Khurrana, Shraddha Kapoor and Pankaj Tripathi in the film.
The Shraddha Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao-starrer, which faced a Box Office clash with 'Khel Khel Mein' and 'Vedaa' on August 15, quickly became the top choice for moviegoers, surpassing the other two by a huge margin.