Jaideep Ahlawat assures fans would see ‘a very different shade’ of Kareena Kapoor in Sujoy Ghosh’s Devotion of Suspect X

“I didn’t have an opinion on her off-screen because I had never met her. But definitely, since the day I started working with her, I understood that she is a thorough professional who arrives on the sets after being fully prepared. She puts in a lot of hard work and is very honest. She is very chilled out. Even though I knew that I was working with a star, she never made me feel so,” he said, adding that she is “somebody who would keep showering praises on you.” Talking in Hindi, Jaideep said, “She would keep praising me, which was quite embarrassing. She is an amazing actor.” Jaideep said working on The Devotion of Suspect X adaption was an “extremely good experience.” Divulging a little more detail on Kareena’s role, Jaideep promised, “You are going to see her in a very different shade.”

 

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As the conversation continued, Jaideep spoke about his latest project The Broken News and revisited Pataal Lok, which brought him unprecedented fame. In The Broken News, Jaideep plays a news anchor of a popular channel. In a scene, he tells Shriya Pilgaonkar that there are no free lunches in the world. In life, the term is usually used to state that to achieve success, you need to work hard. And reiterating just that, Jaideep said he became an actor and achieved success with his own hard work. “Hum invited hi nahi the. Sab kuch khud bana ke khaana pada (We were never invited to ‘free lunches.’ We had to struggle and make it in the industry on our own). It is never easy for people who don’t belong to the industry or don’t have a backing. But the only way to survive is to work hard. You have to prove your worth,” he said. He agreed that for him, his years of hard work paid off with Pataal Lok. He said it made people take a notice of him.

Talking about the series, which released in 2020, Jaideep said “a lot” changed in his career and life after its release. He says now makers have trust in his craft. “I have also become more confident but on the other hand, it is a responsibility, which pushes me to work harder,” he said. But does the pressure of people’s expectations has ever affected his performance? In response, Jaideep said it is humanly impossible to keep repeating success. “Every project is different and many might not hit the bulls eye. But as a performer, you give your hundred percent, no matter what. Sometimes, it might not get acknowledged. It is not possible to deliver only hits. Greatness of an artist depends on an artiste’s dedication. Success and failure will keep happening,” he replied.

With success comes the responsibility to choose the best but often we see pay cheques dominating the deciding factor for many artists. Jaideep, however, believes that stage has not come for him yet. “Abhi toh nahi hua hai aisa. Jab paychecks acche lagenge, tab sochna padega. Either do a good job or get good money. There should be some motivation behind it.”

Asked if he Bollywood is failing to gauge audience’s expectations as the box office saw Hindi films largely failing to perform, he said cinema needs more content. “Honestly, we haven’t put out much content post Covid-19. Films will take time to be made. But yes, the understanding of audience has changed. They are now exposed to content from across the world. They are not going to entertain the same old content. So, OTT is going to stay content driven because 8-10 ghante ki kahani face value pe nahi chalegi (stories won’t succeed only because of the face value). The content and story has to be up to the mark. The audience and their choice of content has changed. And slowly but soon it will reflect in cinemas too,” he concluded.