In the last couple of years, Bobby Deol has attempted a variety of roles, a far departure from his lover boy image in the beginning of his career. He also finds a big difference in the person he is today, compared to who he was as a newcomer. And that’s due to just one thing: fear.

Elaborating, he tells us, “I was scared to face challenges before. I was not fearless then. I am more fearless about things now. You see, there is nothing to lose.”

The 54-year-old, who started off on a high note with Barsaat (1995) in his career, has seen enough lows. Projects including Race 3 (2018), Ashram and Class Of '83 (2020) collectively worked to get him back on track. “I have lost so much, so many times, I know how it feels when you do anything to move forward, only to end up doing rubbish. I challenged myself, and wanted to play different characters,” he quips.

2023 therefore looks good for Deol, with Animal and his south debut, Hari Hara Veera Mallu, featuring him playing characters he has not attempted before. “I am working with Krish and Sandeep Reddy Vanga. As for my south debut, I kept getting offers to do films in the south before too, but nothing was exciting. I was waiting for the right kind of character. I got this opportunity and took it. Let’s see what the outcome is,” he smiles.