The runaway success of Made In Heaven (2019) put Arjun Mathur on the map, even scoring him an International Emmy nomination in 2020. While others in his place might have gone on a signing spree, the actor has been selective about his projects, featuring in The Gone Game (2020) and Jugaadistan, among others. He laments the lack of exciting offers, understanding that shows of Made In Heaven’s calibre are hard to come by.

“Projects like that are rare. So much has to come together — from the director, writers and performances, to music and producers,” says the actor, adding that his past glory holds little relevance today. “The Emmy nomination happened more than two years ago. It doesn’t mean anything today. What matters is what I am doing today.”

Mathur was recently seen in Amazon miniTV’s short film Don’t Drink & Drive. Even as he gears up to reprise his role as a wedding planner in the second season of the Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti-created series, the actor admits that he has turned down several offers in the interim.

“I say no a lot. I find a lot of projects half-baked and under-developed. [It could be so] because there’s a lot that we aren’t able to say. Everyone is scared of whom they might offend. We want to make art, but we don’t want to defend it with our lives, or pay for it with our career and danger to our families.”