Showing posts with label Vivek Gomber interview. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vivek Gomber interview. Show all posts
In my 20s, all my auditions were for a best friend-Vivek Gomber
8:13 AM
Vivek Gomber, who set hearts aflutter in Sir, and is producer of the recent toast of critics The Disciple, tells us why he is happy being a “working actor”
Aastha Atray Banan (MID-DAY; May 9, 2021)
“I think it was only because the character was written in a certain way that women found him attractive. He was a good guy,” says actor-producer Vivek Gomber of Ashwin, the character he played in Rohena Gera’s Is Love Enough - Sir, which pitted him opposite Tilotama Shome. The quiet and sweet film is about a man of privilege, who after breaking up with his would-be wife, who cheats on him, falls in love with his househelp, Ratna. It could be his soft portrayal of a man who sees a woman beyond her circumstances, or just that he comes across as a genuine and good looking catch, but he has left most female viewers say, “He’s dreamy”.
Gomber says, “I think it was because of how the character showed his vulnerabilities.” It could also be the nice shirts he wears, we tell him, and he laughs, “Yes, I want to thank everyone who made that role such a hit. And my parents!”
Ever since, it seems as if the 41-year-old is everywhere. We first noticed him in 2014 in the award-winning indie film Court, where he first worked with director Chaitanya Tamhane. In the past few months, he has entered our lives repeatedly, in Mira Nair’s A Suitable Boy, Pooja Bhatt-fronted Bombay Begums, and now of course as producer of Tamhane’s critical success, The Disciple.
But he has been at it since 2004. Gomber studied acting in Boston, but came to India to be a “working actor”. “I have always just wanted to be part of a conversation. There are many reasons you make it when you make it—you first have to arrive here, and hope to God, that the city is kind to you.”
The actor says like so many others in India, he grew up watching Amitabh Bachchan movies in Jaipur, where he spent his childhood with his banker father. His mother worked in the judiciary. He clarifies that when he says he wanted to be a working actor, he doesn’t mean that he needed a release every year. “It just means you have to be acting, and going for auditions, and meeting people in the know—like directors and casting agents, they need to know who you are. I am just grateful to be part of the conversation. And to be working with someone like Tamhane. Because you can’t work alone.”
Gomber, who started his journey in theatre, went on to act in television, including the popular Zee TV show Astitva - Ek Prem Kahani. “Maybe I didn’t do auditions as well before. I got offered too many best friend roles. In my 20s, all my auditions were for a best friend! How long can you do it?”
It’s finally his time. He says, “When I read Court, I thought it was a great film to engage with. It was very relevant then, and it is even more relevant now. I had thought of nothing except that it could be a way we could learn. And he [Tamhane] is a great director; I wanted to help him,” he says of the film that picked up a National Award and another at the 71st Venice International Film Festival. For now, he is happy that The Disciple is out there for viewers to see, because he thinks that the film is addressing an important issue—celebrating our own music, and showing people the nitty gritties of Indian classical tradition. “I didn’t know much about our music, and now I do. The worlds and the themes Tamhane explores are endless. It’s very important that the movie exists.”
He almost sounds relieved that it’s going to be a while before the audiences see him again. The entertainment industry is on pause, and wants to be safe and take care of its people, Gomber thinks. “We need to recover health-wise, focus on the lockdown, and just get out of the pandemic. But I hope there will be more work. And of course, maybe another Tamhane film, if he will have me.”
I may not have the same power and networking Aamir Khan did-Court producer Vivek Gomber
7:50 AM
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 24, 2015)
Actor-producer Vivek Gomber and debutante director Chaitanya Tamhane decided to go sightseeing after their film, Court, screened at the Asia Fukuoka Film Festival, in Japan, on Wednesday, when their phone began to ring and congratulatory messages started pouring in. Their debut production was India's official selection to the 88th Academy Awards, 2016 in the Best Foreign Language Film Category.
Their Japanese translator, jumped in, borrowing chargers from a local restaurant, to help them answer all their calls. "This is as unexpected as our selection to the National Awards. I have no idea what kind of paperwork is required. It will now be two months of research, prep and planning. We've put our all into this film, monetarily, creatively, emotionally. It was this time last year, that the film had premiered at the Venice International Film Festival. The journey continues," Vivek told Mirror from Fukuoka.
Equally surprised by the news, Chaitanya added, "At every juncture of its journey, the film has given us more than we could ever imagine. Since, we started, we have kept our expectations low and we are truly thankful to the jury."
Court was adjudged Best Feature Film at the 62nd National Film Awards and went on to win 18 other awards at festivals in Mumbai, Vienna, Antalya, and Singapore.
Chaitanya met Vivek in 2011 with the script of the courtroom drama. The 36-year-old-actor decided to come on board as first-time producer-presenter, also playing Vinay Vora, a lawyer in the film.
The Marathi-Hindi drama follows the life of a radical poet who is accused of waging war against the state. Vivek whose English has a hint of an American accent owing to his schooling in Singapore and college in Boston where he studied acting, laughs, "Maybe now someone will give me an acting job. I put all my savings on the line for this one, but the true goal is to be an actor."
Recalling Aamir Khan's Lagaan nominated in the same category for the Academy Awards in 2002, he adds, "I may not have the same power and networking Mr Khan had, but I will raise the money for campaigning. I have a unit of over 100 talented people depending on me to make it happen. I cannot let them down."
Is he is aware that jury member of the committee, Rahul Rawail, resigned, alleging manipulations? "I haven't been able to get through to my mom, let alone anyone else. I'll back on October 5 and better equipped to comment," Vivek says.
I RESIGNED BECAUSE OF AMOL PALEKAR NOT COURT
Filmmaker Rahul Rawail who resigned today after the selection of Court as India's official entry for the Oscars, says that his leaving the jury has nothing to do with the film.
"Court is a fabulous film. I have not quit because of the film, but because of the obnoxious behaviour by Amol Palekar," Rawail told Mirror.
Claiming that Palekar had hated the film which was only selected because of the efforts by the other 16 members on the panel, Rawail added. "I am in Hyderabad right now and will be visiting the Indian Film Director's Association tomorrow to release an official statement on this matter."
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