Modern Delhi: Next, ‘The Fighter’ actor Akshay Oberoi will be seen in a pivotal role in Shashank Khaitan’s ‘Radiant Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumar’ opposite Varun Dhawan and Janhvi Kapoor. “I am so excited. Dharma is on everyone’s wish list. Shashank Khaitan is a great director. These are films that everyone likes. I was hungry to be in commercial cinema. As an artist, you want everyone to see your work. And the only way you pass “What you realize is that maybe you become better when you get cast in movies like this on merit, not privilege or influence. It’s an amazing feeling, and casting based on merit is the biggest validation.”
The actor, who has almost 40 films and dramas to his credit, reveals that his biggest revelation during this period of struggle has been his immense patience. “I love playing so much, regardless of all the punches I took and the rejections I faced every day. I picked myself up and charged into the battlefield at full speed, and that’s how I survived. If my first film had been a success and I had felt the taste of it immediately, I would have been a different person, with a different set of priorities. I would want more money, I would call journalists to write about me and I would invest in a huge fandom. But no, today I feel like I’ve earned my place and I’m proud of it.
However, Akshay Oberoi admits that his ‘The Fighter’ co-star Hrithik Roshan has had a profound influence on him. “Hrithik inspired me. I grew up in Modern Jersey and saw Kaho Na Pyaar Hai as a teenager. That was the day I decided to become an actor. I felt represented by him and found a connection. The universe manifested my desire and my huge mainstream movie came with it. It’s infrequent to meet your idols, and here I am.”
He says next on his wish list is to make another blockbuster like Fighter.
Akshay will soon be seen in Illegal 3. So what is the one thing in Bollywood that should be banned? “It looks like the airport should be banned. I don’t understand this game at all, he says with a laugh.
Akshay, who has also embodied good with evil in shows like The Broken News, honestly admits that like every person, he too has his share of insecurity and jealousy. “I don’t have negative thoughts as such because I’m very mindful of what I think. But yes, there are moments when I feel jealous when I see how some actor or actress who suddenly exploded was praised and praised. Even though I tell myself it has nothing to do with me, we are all competitive and it costs me money to perform better.
