Tanvi Trivedi (BOMBAY TIMES; June 22, 2018)

Mohit Raina’s dream to become an Army officer may not have come true in real life, but it’s all set to get fulfilled on reel. The actor, popular as Mahadev on the mythological show, Devon Ke Dev — Mahadev, is gearing up to make his debut in Bollywood with the upcoming film, Uri.

And guess what, he will play an Indian Army officer in it. Interestingly, the film is set in Mohit’s home state, Jammu & Kashmir and as its title suggests, it revolves around Pakistan’s attack on a military camp in Uri on September 18, 2016. Eleven days after that attack, which left 19 of our jawans dead, the Indian Army retaliated with a series of surgical strikes on terror camps across the border.

Call it a coincidence, but Mohit has just wrapped up the shoot of his TV show, Sarfarosh: Saragarhi 1897 (the story of 21 valiant soldiers, who fought more than 10,000 Afghan intruders). Ask him if he has taken a new-found liking for the patriotic genre and he replies, “It was my dream to join the Indian Army. Since that never got fulfilled, I make up for it by playing a soldier whenever I get a chance. Also, I have always taken up challenging roles on television. So, though I love commercial films, I wanted something different for my film debut as well. Uri has actors like Vicky Kaushal and Paresh Rawal, and it will be a learning experience working with them. Whether it is mythology, history or any other genre, the role has to be backed by strong content.”

Mohit also has strong views on the Uri attack. He says, “Nation always comes first, and I feel that it is a great opportunity to be part of a film that portrays the incident.”