KATHAL STAR ANANT VIJAY JOSHI OPENS UP ON REPRESENTATION OF CASTE SYSTEM, POWER DYNAMICS | EXCLUSIVE
Netflix release Kathal is an immense success. The film revolves around a Kathal (jackfruit) theft and how a young and ambitious police officer is determined to solve the mystery in a humorous manner. It is a decent attempt at satire that has won several hearts. While Sanya Malhotra plays the role of Inspector Mahima, Anant Vijay Joshi has donned the hat of constable Saurabh Dwivedi in Kathal. He also plays Sanya's love interest. In an exclusive conversation with IndiaToday.in, Anant Vijay Joshi opened up about the film's success, his role, his journey in the showbiz industry and much more.
Excerpts from the conversation:
Were you expecting the kind of response Kathal got; especially the kind of love your performance received?
When you do a project, you always expect that people will like it. I always wanted the audience to respond well to Kathal. And when it happened, I just felt 'wow'. It wasn't disappointing at all. People are loving my character of Saurabh, his simplicity and his honesty. He is a very likeable character. I am very happy to see the reaction. For the first time, everybody I am meeting are talking about the entire film and not just saying 'oh, you were great.' They are talking about the film. They have a smile throughout the film which we were expecting to have. It's the simplicity we were trying to portray.
What was it that motivated you to say yes to the film?
I think the name itself attracted me – Kathal. From the word Kathal I was very curious to know what it is. When I got to know it is based on a true story, I was like wow. I wanted to do it. Also, when you know that Netflix is backing something, I had to do it. I also wanted to work with Guneet, Ashwin and Sanya. She has been my favourite person for a very long time.
The title is a bit funny. How did you react to it?
I was like why would anyone make a film on a jackfruit! Then I found out that it is a real incident. I read about it and that was the most exciting part. When I read the whole script, I found out that it's trying to talk more than just a kathal. This is the kind of film I would like to watch with my family. I would have a good time laughing. It is a responsible film overall.
You play a police constable Saurabh Dwivedi who is dating a woman holding a senior position to him. IRL, men would be insecure being in such a position. Your thoughts?
A lot of men try to behave in the way the society expects them to. But at the core of it, we all love our mothers and admire our wives and girlfriends. It's not that we don't love and respect them. It's more about the expectations that is inside our heads about what the society is expecting from us. Once you take a break from those expectations, you don't care about what others are thinking. In Kathal, it's not just about love or the power dynamics, it's also about casteism. We have shown the upper caste and lower caste issue and how society responds to it. We should switch off those expectations and do what your heart says is right. You need to learn how to not be an insecure man if you want to be really strong. Our strength is to love each other and not create complexes within ourselves.
Do you think Bollywood needs to make more movies that normalises women's success and lets go of the toxic masculinity?
Absolutely. Anything in extreme can be toxic whether it is feminism or toxic masculinity. This is what Kathal does. I don't think in the film they try to make Saurabh look low just to make Mahima (played by Sanya Malhotra) look powerful. That is called responsible writing and we need more films like that. There should be more portrayals on equalizing it or not making it about who is big or small. Equality is when we all are at one level and not put anyone down. There's a need for a better representation now.
From Virgin Bhasskar in 2019 to starring in Kathal, how do you see your growth in the showbiz industry?
As an actor, I see it from an audience point of view like who am I performing for. It's an extension to my audience besides the production value and my own value as an actor. At this stage, I only want to be true to my character because this is all I have to prove. For my professional growth, I can only talk about the work I have done. I want to perform to my utmost honesty and ensure I can be that character and work hard. I have never seen acting as a profession; I see it as a commitment to my lifestyle. I just do it for the love of it. It's a commitment and I want to stick to to it. I do not have a plan of action. I want to work with the best storytellers and be a part of good stories.
Do you feel like you are yet to get your due in the industry?
There is always that feeling. That's a human tendency. I think we all crave for more. I get that feeling, yes, but I do not let that overpower the emotion that I have which is pure gratitude. It's an ongoing journey, it's a work in progress. As a person in general, I am very patient too. I am here to stay for long so I never feel like it's now or never. But I also acknowledge the fact that I feel like it's never enough. There will never be enough.
After you are done with a project, do you ever feel insecure about the next job?
To be honest, it happens in stages. Like today I wrapped up series I was shooting for and now I feel like I can have vacations now. But this is a stage. Probably at a point of time I will feel like maybe I should go out and meet people. It's a common tendency to feel that you don't want to be out of job. You always need a purpose. Luckily I have a lot of hobbies that keep me busy like painting and embroidery. I like being creative.
How did you enter the industry, what is your story of struggle during the initial days of auditioning?
I came to Mumbai with an acting job. I was in Delhi doing theatre where I gave an audition for a TV show. I came here with an acting job and a television show last for months. For the first eight months, I had an apartment, I was going for shoots, I was meeting people and I watched senior actors. I started off on a positive note and this is still continuing. I don't want to reduce it to the fact that I had a difficult time. We all have times when we feel lonely, etc. But I never had such a outlook to life. Even when people told me I was making a bad choice doing Gandi Baat, I just thought this is what I have. I can only choose from the options I got. I am not in a dream world and I am quite a realist. I took up a challenge and saw how I could portray those characters. I wanted to do my best. But I do acknowledge that it's not easy to come here and find a job. I am just thankful of how it all started for me.
Do you still face rejections, how do you deal with it?
Yes, absolutely. I still go through a lot of auditions and that's the whole process of how I get the projects I am doing. You give 100 auditions and you get 1. That whole process is very interesting though. I have learnt to detach from things I am working for. It's a very yogic process. You do an audition for a big producer and then you learn you have to wait to actually hear from it. You move on. Nothing is permanent, that is my mantra and that is how I deal with it. Even after 100 rejections, I would tell myself that this is going to change.
2023-05-31T10:14:34Z dg43tfdfdgfd