Wearing a leather jacket and sunglasses, walking around with a sense of purpose, the character of Sukha in Disney+ Hotstar’s Apurva mimics the swag of on-screen heroes. Only that he is a menacing antagonist who abducts the titular character, essayed by Tara Sutaria, in director Nikhil Nagesh Bhat’s survival drama. So, what drew Abhishek Banerjee to this role? The character’s unabashed confidence, he tells us.

“By nature, I am an introvert, who is finding stories that can be my way to be an extrovert. The confidence I lack in life, I seek in my characters,” he says.

Banerjee caught everyone’s attention with his unflinching portrayal of Hathoda Tyagi in Paatal Lok (2020). Since then, he has juggled comic and villainous roles with equal ease. But he admits villainy is more interesting to explore on screen.

“Most men are striving to be the alpha. The hero and villain game is all about being alpha. I am not getting hero parts, and the closest to getting there is being cast as an antagonist. Every now and then, I play the nice guy to break the monotony. It’s my game with the audience— ‘You think I am cute? Let me scare you in my next.’”

His character of simpleton Jana fits perfectly in that game. The actor has reprised his role in Stree 2, helmed by Amar Kaushik. “In Apurva, I am certain people will see a more evolved actor. [On the other hand], Jana is who I am; there is no acting in it. I feel Stree 2 will be among the biggest films of 2024.”