Following in footsteps of his father, a retired colonel, will play her army officer husband
Hiren Kotwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 18, 2020)

Only those who watched Bhavesh Joshi Superhero know that Harrsh Vardhan Kapoor didn’t play the titular role. Priyanshu Painyuli was the masked vigilante. Now, the actor is set to play husband to Taapsee Pannu’s Kutchi athlete in Akarsh Khurana’s sports-drama Rashmi Rocket.

Priyanshu landed the role after Vishal Bhardwaj’s adaptation of Midnight’s Children was called off. “I had blocked my dates for the film, but it didn’t materialise. Luckily, Akarsh reached out to me with this role and I grabbed it,” smiles the actor, adding that the director and he have been friends since their theatre days and had even collaborated on the 2018 film, High Jack.

However, it wasn’t friendship that made Priyanshu give a nod to a film revolving around a female protagonist. The actor got reeled in by the prospect of playing an army officer. “My dad is a retired colonel and there was a time when I wanted to join the army, before I got involved in dramatics and acting,” he shares, pointing out that his character supports his athlete-wife in her journey and is an important part of the narrative which builds around a real event. The 31-year-old actor, who hails from Bangalore, will join the team when they begin shooting in Kutch next month.