After a self-imposed hiatus of two years, actor Gaurav Chopraa was recently seen in actor Akshay Kumar-starrer Bachchhan Paandey. Chopraa mentions that he received the call for the film right after both his parents passed away during the pandemic. “It was difficult [to accept the offer], but I took it as a sign. The fact that I got this movie right after the tragedy, I took it as if my parents orchestrated it,” he shares.

To get into the character, he worked out for almost five hours every day. However, once the movie released, the 43-year-old’s excitement tapered, as “most of it was edited”.

Chopraa, who was cast “as the main antagonist in the film”, feels that his role lost prominence in the final cut. “When the film released, I was quiet. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want to sound like I was sour or had a problem. But as an actor, aapka dil thoda toot jaata hai. There were a few things that I did jiske liye taaliyan baji thi set pe. So, you want that to reach the audience. But in the final cut of the film, those parts weren’t there,” the actor says.