EXCLUSIVE: Sharad Kelkar recalls being abused by fans for playing a villain after Saat Phere says, “Logo ne mujhe bahut gaaliya di”

Sharad Kelkar needs no introduction. The actor has proved his acting capabilities both on the small screen and big screen by sharing in shows and films such as Saat Phere – Saloni Ka Safar, Bairi Piya, Kuch Toh Log Kahenge, Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela, Tanhaji, Laxmii, Srikanth and more. He’s also known for being the voice of lending his voice for several films such as Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Guardians of the Galaxy, the Fast and the Furious series, Baahubali, Salaar and more.

During an exclusive chat with Bollywood Bubble, Sharad went down memory lane and got candid about many things. While reminiscing his Saat Phere days, the actor opened up about people approaching him with similar roles and fans abusing him for deviating from playing lovable characters on screen.

Sharad Kelkar on being typecast/offered same roles

When asked about the fear of being typecast, Sharad Kelkar said, “When you get into an image fir problem waha hota hai (then there are problems). Maine jab Saat Phere kiya, tab maine 3 saal woh show kiya. Maine realise kiya ki main jaha paunchna tha as an actor, main waha paunch chuka, abhi aur growth nahi ho raha. Jaisa hota hai humare industry mein – typecasting is there… everywhere… I don’t know why. Jaise show khatam hua, logo ne mujhe similar 10-12 shows offer kiye. Maine deliberately koi chose nahi kiya. (After doing Saat Phere for three years, I realized I was not growing as an actor anymore. I reached a stagnant point. As soon as the show ended, I was approached with at least a dozen similar roles. I don’t know what people wanted to typecast me.)”

Sharad Kelkar on playing versatile roles

Talking about opting to play a role completely different from the one he just did, the actor added, “Maine ek show kiya joh Ektaa Kapoor ne diya aur woh tha anti-hero show. Woh maine kiya. Toh logo ne mujhe galiya di mujhe ki why are playing a character like this when people love you. Maine kaha, ‘par main as an actor grow nahi kar raha hu’. Jab maine woh character kiya toh initially logo ne mujhe bahut gaaliya di. Lekin jab show dhekha toh kaha, ‘Isne toh kamaal ka kaam kiya. Tu ne bada interesting character choose kiya.’ (I did a show with Ektaa – Bairi Piya, that saw me as the anti-hero. People were abusive towards me when they saw the promos of the show. They wanted to know the reason behind the switch. But when they watched the show, their opinions changed.)”

He continued, “Woh khatam hua toh negative (characters) offer hua… Toh maine ek mature doctor ka show kiya. So I kept on changing my characters. toh usse ek perception build nahi hua ki main typecast na ho jao. Abhi bhi main koshish karta. I still don’t know why people approach me to play a policeman or villain. Maybe once they see Srikant (starring Rajkummar Rao and Alaya F) their opinions may change. (After that role I was approached to play more negative characters.)”

Watch the full interview here:

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