Kaun Pravin Tambe? actor Shreyas Talpade: People forgot that I can do serious roles too

Shreyas Talpade is all set to play cricketer Pravin Tambe in his upcoming film Kaun Pravin Tambe?. Tambe started his professional cricket journey playing for the IPL team Rajasthan Royals at the age of 41. He is playing this season of IPL too.
In an interview with , Talpade shared that bagging Kaun Pravin Tambe? was like a boon in disguise as it helped him to finally break away from being typecast as the comic relief.
He said, “It is amazing, and there is so much of drama in that story that there is very little ‘cinematic liberty’ that we’ve really taken. Everything that you see in the movie has actually happened to Pravin Tambe. We used to keep asking him, ‘Where were you?’ and ‘What did you do all those years till the age of 40-41 years?’ When you len to his story, you go ‘wow’ because he’s been at it time and again. He’s been trying to be there and prove himself like we mentioned in the trailer. At 35, he was performing but his age had passed. At 40, while he was still performing, people said his retirement age had approached. So finally, somebody thankfully thought that age is just a number for this guy and that he is still playing. He is not someone who thinks about his age at all, and I think it is a great thing because that’s the reason that the little child is still alive in him. So, for an actor, a story like this is a blessing. I am very happy and fortunate that I got to play Pravin Tambe on screen.”

Shreyas Talpade, 46, made his silver screen debut with sports drama Iqbal in 2005. Talpade rues that he couldn’t deliver the kind of work that was expected of him after Iqbal, Dor and Welcome to Sajjanpur.
The actor said, “My journey has been pretty much similar to Pravin Tambe’s. I come from a very humble middle class background. With Iqbal, I got adulation and love. Suddenly I was thrown into the limelight. After Iqbal, there were a lot of offers that came my way. I kept asking couple of people what I should be doing and how I should be steering my career. I grew up looking up to certain people. So when they approach you, you can’t say no to them. You reason it out and do what is offered to you. In that process, you might end up taking a few wrong decisions. So, I did a few films, which people loved and did good business too. However, with some films, I ended up being typecast. The kind of work that was expected out of me after Iqbal, Dor and Welcome to Sajjanpur, that didn’t quite happen. After that, people said that probably I lost track. And it is true, I won’t deny that. I started feeling that did I only have this much potential and is there more that I can actually do. And then suddenly a film like Kaun Pravin Tambe? came to me. At this point in my career, I am breaking out of the typecasting mould and venturing into certain type of roles.”

He continued, “There was a time, after doing Iqbal, I went for the audition of a particular comedy film. The director very categorically said, “‘The audition is good, but you’ve done Iqbal. You have a very serious kind of image. Who will accept you doing a comedy? Shaayad tu comedy mein nahi chalega. I don’t want to take the risk/ I am very sorry.’” And post that Golmaal Returns happened. There were multi-starrers happening at that point in time. Then Paying Guests, Housefull 2 happened and comedy was the only thing I started to be known for. Suddenly people forgot that I can do serious roles too. They forgot that I started my career with a serious film. I won’t say it is unfortunate. Maybe that’s how it was probably destined to be, and I kept flowing with that. I kept trying, but certain efforts didn’t yield desired results at that point in time. However, I don’t regret it. I knew then that my derailed train would get back on track someday and gain mileage too. I just kept working towards it. ”

“When you start getting typecast in a particular genre, it is very difficult to break away from that. What if these people (the makers of Kaun Pravin Tambe?) had thought that they couldn’t risk it with me doing a cricket film after doing all the comedies in my recent past? But they held on to the idea, had faith in me that I’ll be able to do it, and it happened. I needed this film at this point in my career. It has come as a blessing. Of course, every film comes with its destiny, and I don’t know where it will land. But as a human and an actor, this is a very special film for me. This is one film which I’ll show my daughter tomorrow. I am very proud of this film,” Talpade added.

In a recent interview, Shreyas Talpade had stated that whenever he feels depressed, he reminds himself that he is the guy who did Iqbal. He said, “I am a very emotional person. Iqbal happened at a low point in my career. I had just gotten married. I got married one day before Iqbal and then I went to shoot the film as it was a huge opportunity for me. I really wanted it to work. I gave it my all at that time. I didn’t meet my wife for a month and a half after we got married. It was such an emotional time in my life. After the kind of love that I got for Iqbal, I told myself that this is what I live for, and this is what I actually want in life. I told myself that if I could pull off an Iqbal, I can do much more. But then somewhere down the line you start doubting yourself because there are times when you have the confidence in you but others don’t. That’s when you start doubting yourself and that’s not a great space to be in. However, if your family supports you, you can sail through. My wife reminds me of our time during Iqbal. She says, ‘Dont forget that! You have a lot more in you and people just need to see it, and they will ultimately.’”

So has the bad phase come to an end? “Hopefully. I am keeping my fingers crossed. At least I am happy with my work now. I am no longer in a sad state where I regretted anything. But yes, I am in a happy state now.”
Shreyas Talpade recently lend his voice for the Hindi version of Allu Arjun’s Pushpa: The Rising. He shared the experience taught him an important life lesson. The actor said, “Very recently, I dubbed for a south film (Pushpa: The Rise) and the response that I got for it was extraordinary to say the least. Nobody expected Pushpa to do so well. Who could have? The producer was not confident himself. He was like, ‘Please sir, don’t charge us too much for this. It is a Hindi dubbed film. I don’t even know how much money it would make,’ and look at him right now. He is minting moolah. The film got such a phenomenal response, so you never know (how things work). If there is one thing that I have learnt, it is that you just have to keep doing your work with all your heart. Be sincere, keep your focus intact and everything will fall in place. Your time will come. We just have to wait for it and keep at it.”