It's been two months since Paatal Lok premiered on Amazon Prime Video. According to Abhishek Banerjee, praises for his performance as Hathoda Tyagi still continue to pour in. Speaking to The Quint, Banerjee said he always wanted to be an actor but started working as a casting associate in Mumbai because he needed a job to survive in the city.
"People and friends who have critiqued my work were surprised to see me as Jana in Stree than as Hathoda Tyagi in Paatal Lok. I think for friends you can never be as innocent as the character Jana because he was very childlike", Abhishek said.
Abhishek Banerjee and Anmol Ahuja's Casting Bay has become a big name in the film business. Around the release of Paatal Lok, some people from the acting community expressed resentment about Casting Bay for unfairly holding on to parts to cast members from their firm which employs actors like Banerjee himself. On the conflict of being a casting director and actor, Abhsihek says, "I will never ask a director to consider me for a role. If a director feels that I fit the part, they will decide if I must audition. There have been times when a director thought I could fit well in a part but I have graciously denied. There are multiple conflicts involved but it has to be a director's decision about what they want."
At a time when two casting directors from, India Tess Joseph and Nandini Shrikent, have been invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, it won't be wrong to say that the world is looking at India for it's movies as well as the talent we have.
Abhishek added that casting directors have a huge responsibility because they are the link or bridge between the outside world and the industry. "I want to say that actors need to stop looking for that one big break and instead make it about the journey".
Watch the video to find out more.
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