Rrahul Sudhir: Had packed my bags to leave showbiz

Rrahul Sudhir

Don't go by his brooding persona on-screen because Rrahul Sudhir has a wicked sense of humour that his co-stars are probably still reeling from. Kickstarting his career with the web, the actor steered towards television and found immense popularity with Ishq Mein Marjawan 2. In a candid chat with mid-day, Sudhir talks about how most scenes in the show crack him up as they defy logic and his personal boundaries as an artiste.

Edited excerpts from the interview.

Usually, actors graduate from television to the web. You went the other way around.
I didn't know there was such a stark difference between the functioning of the two mediums. I was new when I started doing web shows. I did not know there was a hierarchy of sorts where after doing web shows, you transition only to movies. I went with the flow and didn't want to restrict myself to any medium.

Does living the same character for too long feel monotonous?
Television scripts keep changing, and the characters alter over time. The initial pillars that you build your character on get diluted in the ocean of changes. One fine day, you wonder what you have been doing. We have to make do with our reality and ensure that the scene is believable at the end of the day, even though we might find it funny.

Helly Shah and Rrahul Sudhir in Ishq Mein Marjawan 2

What was your reaction to the scene where Helly Shah accidentally gets locked in the suitcase? It was the most talked-about sequence in the entire show.
We often laugh about it so that we don't feel the humiliating aspect of it. When I first read the scene, for the first 10 minutes, I kept re-reading it to ensure I was reading it right. Then, Helly and I had a good laugh about it. I had a blast when we shot the sequence where I am talking to the entire family while she is in the suitcase with only her finger jutting out.

While suspension of disbelief is one thing, daily soaps often also feed into people's superstitions. In one of the recent episodes, a diya goes out and Helly's character fears it's a bad omen.
Whether we like it or not, superstitions are ingrained in our system. People stop when a black cat crosses their path. Superstitions are constantly playing in our head. So, when we show a diya going out and something ominous happening, we're merely reflecting people's thoughts.

As an actor, where do you draw the line in terms of what you will do on screen?
I can go shirtless, but the woman should not [expose too much]. At the back of my mind, I know my mother will be watching this and I don't want her to feel uncomfortable. Also, I will not do rape sequences on screen. People look up to me. If I portray such a scene, they may think it is okay to force themselves on a woman. Unknowingly, I don't want to mislead people. You have to be responsible for what you do on screen.

Before you soared to popularity, you were on the verge of leaving showbiz. What changed your mind?
Right before I was offered Ishq Mein Marjawan, I was packing my bags to leave Mumbai. I was contemplating what my next step will be once I head back home to Dehradun. While I had faced dejection earlier too, it had never left me [defeated]. But this time, I was sure I didn't want anything to do with acting. I went to Goa for a holiday when I got a call from the creative director for this show and I insisted on playing Vansh.

How did you convince your parents about your switch from engineering to acting?
My father is a tough nut to crack. He believed that acting meant doing drugs and womanising, and considered it the most disrespectful profession. I couldn't tell him that it was art and that we sell dreams to people. My mother saw that I was deeply unhappy at [the corporate] job in Delhi. Seeing my unhappiness, they finally said, do whatever makes you happy. That's when I told them that I want to be an actor. Their response was, ‘Beta haath se nikal gaya'. But now, dad believes I can handle this world.