When actor Viineet Kumar made his debut as an actor, he was afraid of being stereotyped. It was in 2018 when the actor rose to prominence with the release of Mukkabaaz. Often at times, especially in the Hindi film industry, you can become a typecast. But thankfully, for Viineet, his Bollywood journey did not become a story of 'once a wrestler, always a wrestler'. During an exclusive conversation with International Business Times, he talked about his idea of a perfect script.
So are you satisfied as an actor with the kind of roles you get?
Yes, I am satisfied because I am getting a chance to do a variety and not being stereotyped, and I'm really really happy about it. Normally, what happens, earlier, when I spoke to you during the promotions of Mukkabaaz, that was a stage in my life as a performer when I was seen as a wrestler. After that, the offers I got, they were not like Mukkebaaz. But I will agree with you Samarpita ji, this is just my beginning.
As an actor what kind of content do you look for in your script?
Anything new. Something I haven't done before. I have not done horror content, I have not worn a uniform previously. Betaal is my stepping stone. Betaal has horror, zombie, thriller, and I want that space where there is well-written content. As an actor, I want to experiment. A lot of times I want to surprise myself, like last year I saw Joker if I have ever got a role like that I'm on. Or even Pablo Escobar from Narcos, or Walter White from Breaking Bad, I'm up for these roles, I want to keep experimenting.
In Betaal, you guys continuously refer to the word civilisation. What is your idea of civilisation?
According to me, civilisation should be where we all learn to take care of each other, we learn to co-exist, and not leave someone behind. Everyone should have the opportunity to grow, not that some people get the opportunity to grow and others get ignored. See, right now, we are in a lockdown due to this coronavirus pandemic, but this also shows that we are united and we are all in this together. Whether you are in the UK, the USA, China, or India, we are all connected.
I am talking about countries not states in India. So we must understand that what we are doing must be meaningful. Your actions have a significant reaction and you cannot dodge that. Betaal teaches you that too. My character in Betaal has done something in the past which keeps haunting him. Even when he is in a battle with a dead army it keeps haunting him. Whatever you are doing, you must think thrice about the rights and wrongs.
Netflix shared a clip with the press where you went to evacuate a village but Jitendra Ji's character ask you to do an encounter. What were your exact emotions as a human being that moment?
Exactly. Officers in the field, work on orders that come from above. Soldiers are trained to follow orders, which was my character's job, in Betaal. He is supposed to follow orders and he does not know the reason behind the orders which was being given to him.
But when he is in the field in the situation, he has to take the call whether or not to fire the people in front of him, when he reveals the truth about the people in front of him to the officers above him, he restricts himself from pulling the trigger because he does not want to repeat the same mistake.
Right at that moment something happens and he becomes helpless and I don't want to say what else I will be giving out spoilers, but that will get unfolded in the following episodes. My character is layered, he changes with experience and times. He cannot undo the past so he does the right situation when he gains experience.
Did you feel haunted while shooting for Betaal?
Yes, about that, we were in a location where there was a building which remained closed. The local people told us a lot of horror stories, but I didn't experience anything. I was shooting in UP once at a train station, which used to be closed. We wanted to shoot with a train that runs on coal.
There too I heard horror stories. It's very common. Even when I grew up, I listened to a lot of horror stories. I have heard a lot of horror stories throughout my life but in my personal life, I have not experienced anything spooky.
