Sanyal to play ghost in Midnight's Children

The theatre-trained actor gets slotted in odd roles in Bollywood

The theatre-trained actor gets slotted in odd roles in Bollywood

What's with ghosts and Kaminey actor Chandan Roy Sanyal?

The 31-year-old has landed a role in Deepa Mehta's Midnight's Children, playing an anti-social character who gets killed and returns as a ghost. Vishal Bhardwaj is also reportedly planning a sequel to Kaminey where Sanyal, who played Shahid Kapoor's psychotic friend who is gunned down, will return as a ghost.

The actor finds the connection amusing and thinks of incidents that have haunted him. "My life has always been surreal. So, I guess, I am comfortable with ghosts," he laughs.

After doing theatre in England, Sanyal trained under the legendary Habib Tanvir and later Alyque Padamsee in Mumbai. Sanyal thought he would get lucky with films. "No such luck came my way. I got a small part in Rang De Basanti as one of the revolutionaries.

I nearly lost Kaminey. Bhardwaj's casting director Honey Trehan had auditioned me. Then I left the country without giving my contact number. Weeks later, I casually called up Honey. They were frantically looking for me," he recalls.

At the moment, Sanyal has prominent parts in Remo d'Souza's F.A.L.T.U and Hema Malini's Tell Me Oh Khuda.

"I'm taking slow and steady steps. I play the lead in a comedy directed by Rafeeq Elias. It is called Love You To Death." And yes Sanyal plays a ghost in that film too.