Pratik Gandhi: I was starstruck by Vidya Balan, had to tell myself ‘I am just meeting a colleague’
Actor Pratik Gandhi says he was "starstruck" after meeting his Do Aur Do Pyaar co-star Vidya Balan on the sets of the upcoming romantic drama.
The 43-year-old-actor, who is a known name in Gujarati theatre and cinema and shot to fame with the Hansal Mehta-directed series Scam 1992: The Harshad Mehta Story (2020), stars as Vidya’s husband in the movie about a couple on the brink of a breakup.
"When I was offered the film, I was called to meet her as they wanted to see us together... And then, we had a couple of readings also. I was dealing with that starstruck moment. I actually had to behave normal, and think, 'I'm just meeting a colleague'. I had to behave like that,” the actor told PTI in an interview.
Pratik said it was Vidya who put him at ease during their photo shoot for Do Aur Do Pyaar.
“With this laughter (of hers), she made things comfortable. The first time when we met and we were clicking those awkward couple photographs, she laughed and she said, 'This is awkward', and then she laughed,” he recalled.
As an actor, the Scam 1992 star expressed his admiration for Vidya and noted how effortlessly she can play any character.
“I like the varied characters that she has created, and she always came across on screen as a very confident actor, very comfortable in all the characters. So, emoting those emotions never feels like she's trying or she's putting in a lot of effort. That effortlessness on the screen is what I love the most,” he said. Do Aur Do Pyaar also stars Ileana D'Cruz and Sendhil Ramamurthy, and is directed by debutante director Shirsha Guha Thakurta. The Hindi-language romantic comedy is set to release in theatres on April 19.
Pratik, who garnered appreciation for his work in the recently released Madgaon Express, feels "lucky" to have had the chance to play a variety of parts in Hindi films in a short span.
“I felt welcomed especially after Scam, which put me on the national platform, gave me national and to an extent international audience. And by audience, I mean the actual audience and even the makers, writers and directors. They are also the audience for an actor. I feel lucky to have gotten different scripts. That's actually a big plus,” the actor said.
He added that with each movie, he likes to surprise the audience.
"I feel comfortable and secure in that place as an actor where the audience cannot anticipate what I am bringing to the table. It also helps me free myself from any inhibitions and create different characters and take more risks in terms of stories and characters,” he added.
Next on Gandhi's bucket list is an out-and-out action film.
"There are a lot of genres that I've not done yet, like an out-and-out action, l would like to explore that. I like to touch upon complex human emotions,” he said.