Actor Varun Sharma who was seen in Roohi recently speaks about his journey in Bollywood.
There's something alluring about actor Varun Sharma. He’s not the conventional Bollywood actor with six-pack abs or a larger-than-life persona. But the actor is among those artistes who seamlessly fit into any character, whether these are comedy or romantically-demanding roles. When Varun debuted in Fukrey as Choocha, an aimless youngster who dreams of making it big, and falls in love with the local gangster, Bholi Punjaban, played by Richa Chadha, it wasn’t the most romantic sequence.
Yet the naiveté with which he portrayed the comical role made the film and his character one of the most unforgettable ones in Hindi cinema. His most recent outing, Roohi, a horror comedy too has impressed audiences, and Varun’s performance is one of the key contributing factors. The actor’s character, Kattanni Qureshi, who falls in love with a spirit thoroughly entertained with his perfect comic timing and chemistry with his coactors. “I have just kept bagging comedy films since my debut. I personally love the genre, and I enjoy making people laugh.This has became my forte,” says the actor. Though it would come as a surprise to learn that prior to acting in films, when he was doing theatre, Varun was always cast in serious plays.
“I was always cast in intense roles while doing theatre. I acted in plays by Anton Chekov or would be cast as Ashwathama (a character in Mahabharata). Everything was quite serious, and I never thought I could make people laugh,” he says candidly. But his characters, be it Choocha or Kattanni, have enabled Varun to discover a new set of skills and he credits this to the shift in cinema today, where relatable and everyday stories are finding many takers. For someone who comes from Jalandhar and has made it big in Bollywood, Varun is the poster boy for many young artistes who aspire to become actors. His repertoire of films with big production houses speaks for itself. The actor also acknowledges that there was a lot that he learnt from his directors and co-actors.
“The fact that I got a chance to work in films by banners such as Excel Entertainment, Maddock Films and Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment, and now working in a Rohit Shetty Picturez production (Cirkus)... I feel very honoured. I am grateful that I get to work with such amazing creative minds. Basically we spend so much time with each other that we literally become like a family, and I keep learning and absorbing from these people. Despite being such senior artistes they keep rehearsing and improvising, and it’s interesting to observe them,” says the actor who is a big fan of Shah Rukh Khan. Varun got a chance to recreate SRK’s popular palat (turn around) scene from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, for Roohi, and he says this will be the most special memory for him. “I have received many videos of audiences whistling and clapping in the theatres when that scene plays out, and it will be very close to my heart,” he signs off.
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