Internet star Jitendra Kumar on how Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan and Panchayat changed the game for him
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; June 23, 2020)

It all started with an innocent bet after watching Amazon Prime's Panchayat, headlined by the delightful Jitendra Kumar. In one of the episodes, he has to let go of a chair that he holds close to his heart. At the end of the episode, his boss Sarpanch-ji brings a similar chair into the office. As my friend and I placed a bet on whether it was a new chair or not, we called the one man who would know the answer. Kumar incidentally is in the midst of promoting his Netflix film, Chaman Bahar, which tells the story of unrequited love. "My character aspires to run a paan shop and the film traces the reality of one-sided love. We've set the story in Chhattisgarh, complete with its local dialect and flavour," he says.

Kumar forayed into Bollywood earlier this year with Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan. As an actor balancing both mediums, where does he stand on the OTT-versus-theatre debate? "The theatre experience can't be replicated. How do you shrink a Baahubali to a 13-inch screen? But, some stories reach better on OTT. For instance, people had missed Gone Kesh when it had released, but the film grabbed eyeballs on Amazon. On the other hand, Shubh Mangal is for community viewing where people can hoot, laugh and cry together."

Though Kumar was already a bona fide Internet star, he agrees that Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan brought him mainstream appeal, and in turn, gave a boost to Panchayat. "Earlier, 15 to 35-year-olds would watch my work. After Shubh Mangal, aunties, mothers and uncles knew me, and that helped more people watch Panchayat. Their constant reference point was: 'Woh Shubh Mangal wala ladka hai iss show mein'. On some days, I wake up to long texts from fans who explain how the character resonated with them." The actor informs that the second season is in the works. "The writers are working on it."

Having started out with TVF sketches in 2012, Kumar was gradually perceived as the quintessential boy-next-door as small-town stories became a sub-genre into themselves. Ask him if he fears that his middle-class-boy act will get repetitive, and he reasons, "Am I stereotyped? Probably, but Aman Tripathi of Shubh Mangal is nothing like Sacheev in Panchayat. Small-town stories are far too many and we have just started to explore them on screen. If we write fresh material, I don't think we will run out of ideas. I came from IIT Kharagpur to Mumbai to become an actor. I was confident that in a month, I will have movies, and in a year, I will be a star. The reality was starkly different. Despite how long it took to reach here, I can say with complete faith that hard work and relentless effort are rewarded. My college friends still don't take me seriously as an actor, but I have a sense of contentment." In the wake of Sushant Singh Rajput's tragic demise, Kumar's is the much-needed story of an engineer from a small town who broke into Bollywood.

Of course, the chat will be incomplete without asking him about the chair. He laughs, "The Sarpanch buys himself a new chair to show the young city-bred boy who is the boss of the village!" That's a bet won, alright.

Gone Kesh is a small film with a big heart. It tells the story of a young Siliguri girl who is diagnosed with alopecia, a condition that leads to loss of hair. The idea is novel and never before used in a Hindi film as a principle plot as far as I know. Also, the principle characters are lovely and endearing. The parents are supportive of the daughter and the way they treat her is heartwarming. Also, it’s interesting to see the father selling watches on the street for a living. On the flipside, the film is a bit dragging. The film also inches towards the (justified) finale quite slowly. The non-linear narrative at times takes a toll as for a few seconds or even minutes, one might not realize when the flashback has ended. There’s also one smaller hiccup in the end but it can’t be shared as it would be a spoiler. Shweta Tripathi however has rocked the show and it’s praiseworthy how she effortlessly handles the difficult lead character. The character is difficult but she gives her best. And her smile is to die for! Vipin Sharma is sincere and quite likeable. Deepika Amin is excellent as the supportive mother. Jitendra Kumar suits the part and does well. All in all, Gone Kesh is a genuine effort and deserves to be seen and supported!

My rating - *** out of 5!

Shweta with co-stars Mallika Dua, Amyra Dastur and Sapna Pabbi in the upcoming show

Actress Shweta Tripathi reveals that her real-life bachelorette and wedding coincided with the shoot of her upcoming show
Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 22, 2018) 

Shweta Tripathi, who’s returning for the second season of The Trip, with co-stars Sapna Pabbi and Mallika Dua, and Amyra Dastur stepping in for Lisa Haydon, is excited about the TV show. “A lot has happened between the two seasons. The first one saw my character’s bachelorette while in the second one, I’m married. It made me do me homework since there’s no script for what happened in between,” she informs.

While the previous season was shot in Thailand, this one brings the girl gang to India. “I love travelling within the country too. Pondicherry is one of my favourite places. I learnt surfing there and attended a theatre workshop, so I keep visiting it every two years,” Shweta says. Incidentally, it was also a case of life imitating art, and vice versa, for Shweta. “I got ready to be married in The Trip. Then, I had my real-life bachelorette, which was followed by the wedding (with rapper-beau Chaitnya Sharma earlier this year). We then shot for the show, where I played a married woman,” she says, adding, “I’ve never played a married character before so this one’s like my lucky charm.”

And while she misses Lisa, Shweta is all praise for Amyra. “She has a young, fun vibe so one can never be bored around her. It can be tough for a new person to join a team that is so closeknit but it was smooth sailing with Amyra from the start,” she reveals.

Next up, Shweta is doing a film, Gone Kesh, which is about a 15-year-old girl who discovers she has alopecia. “My first Tamil film is also gearing up for release,” she says.

Shravan Shah (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 9, 2018)

Shweta Tripathi, who was last seen opposite Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Shlok Sharma’s controversial film Haraamkhor, is foraying into the sci-fi genre with her next. The 32-year-old actress and her co-star Vikrant Massey play astronauts in Cargo. It is directed by Arati Kadav and they are currently shooting in Film City.

“The film is set inside a space-ship. We began shooting in the first week of January and have another week to go before wrap-up,” Shweta told Mirror, adding that she plays a character called Yuvishka Shekhar who has powers to heal. “So does Vikrant, he’s my senior and I join his spaceship.”

Shweta is also working on a Tamil film, Mehendi Circus, written by National Award winning writer-director Raju Murugan and her biggest challenge was shooting for two projects simultaneously. “It was hectic but fun. We had a lot of reading sessions with Arati who made us watch sci-fi films, books to go through and told us stories. It was like being back in school,” she laughed.

Besides the two projects, the Masaan actress is also set to feature in a drama which revolves around a girl suffering from Alopecia. “Gone Kesh is about a 15-year-old aspiring dancer who loses all her hair to the illness,” Shweta signed off.