39 minutes agoAuthor: Virendra Mishra
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The journey of actor Ramandeep Yadav, who is gaining fame with his role of Rajjo in the web series ‘Rakh’, was not easy to reach here. His dream was once to play for the Indian cricket team, but fate brought him to theater and then acting. He gave auditions in Mumbai for four years, faced financial crunch and even thought of leaving the city many times, but did not give up.
Finally ‘Rakh’ gave him the recognition he had been waiting for for a long time. Talking to Dainik Bhaskar, while talking about struggle, rejection, theatre, ‘Rakh’ and preparation for Rajjo, he said that many people say that if he had been around, he would have definitely killed us.
Ramandeep Yadav’s dream was to play for the Indian cricket team.
Question: You have also played cricket. Then how did you suddenly turn towards acting?
answer: To be honest, even today I don’t fully understand why this happened. My dream was to play cricket for India. Never thought that I would act. There was not a single day or incident after which I decided to quit cricket. Gradually I felt that things were not going the way I wanted. Despite hard work, I was not feeling like it. Maybe God had something else in mind for me.
In the last year of college, a friend said that auditions are being held for youth festival, let’s try. Without thinking much, I auditioned and got selected in the first attempt. Performed on stage for the first time and realized right then and there that I was enjoying it a lot. That experience changed the direction of my life.
Question: How did the journey to reach theater begin?
answer: After seeing my performance at the Youth Festival, the theater teacher said that I should join his theater group. I said that I cannot afford to pay the fees. At that time the fee was Rs 1500-2000 and I could not ask for money from my family to learn theatre. He said come, don’t worry about the fees.
In the beginning I did street plays. Did many street plays as part of awareness campaign. I didn’t know that I would get money for it. The first check was received for Rs 2500. The theater fees were paid with the same money and Rs 500 were left. Then I realized that acting can also earn money.
Question: Had you decided at that time that now you have to do acting only?
answer: No, not at all. At that time I used to practice cricket in the morning and do theater in the evening. I wanted to take both together, but gradually I realized that theater demands as much hard work and dedication as cricket.
Discipline is fixed in cricket, but in acting one has to create one’s own discipline. One has to read books, observe people, read poems, listen to music, see paintings and understand human behavior.
After about one and a half to two years, I was convinced that now I have to move ahead in acting.
Question: Did you even try going to any acting school?
answer: Yes. I auditioned for the National School of Drama (NSD), but was not selected. After this he tried in other drama schools also, but did not get success. However I did not give up. Kept doing theater and also kept giving auditions.
Question: How did you get your first break?
answer: My first project was Anurag Kashyap sir’s film ‘Manmarziyaan’. After this, I got MX Player’s series ‘Campus Diaries’, in which I played the character of Prithviraj. After this series, people in the industry started recognizing me and I started getting auditions.
Question: How did you get the Netflix series ‘Cat’?
answer: At that time I was shooting for ‘Campus Diaries’. that’s when I ‘cat‘ Got the audition. In this I had to play the role of Sardar, but I did not even know how to tie a turban. After finishing the shoot, I went straight to my friend’s house. He helped me throughout the night, tied the turban and we recorded the audition.
Later I was called to Amritsar to meet the director. I wore a turban and went by train for the first time. He did not even move his neck during the entire journey because there was a fear that the turban might get damaged. Today I think that going wearing a turban was the right decision. Perhaps that is why the director did not need to think twice about my look.
Question: After ‘CAT’, how did you decide to come to Mumbai from Chandigarh?
answer: After working in ‘CAT’ I got some financial support. Then I felt that now I should go to Mumbai and try my luck. I wanted to meet the casting directors and tell them that I had worked in ‘CAT’. I came to Mumbai about three months before the release of the show.
After the release of ‘Cat’, people liked my work. The casting directors I had met before remembered my face. After this, auditions started coming. Earlier I had to go and tell myself that I was an actor, but now people were familiar with my work.
Although auditions were being received, no big project was being received. Many times I reached the last round, but someone else got the role. Four years passed by in no time.
Question: How difficult was the struggle of these four years?
answer: it was hard. The money that he had brought to Mumbai was exhausted in about six months. After this I did theatre, took workshops and kept doing whatever work I got. When there was no income, expenses were reduced. I started living a simple life. The attempt was to somehow survive in Mumbai.
I lived in Versova. Many times I felt that I had to leave this city. I never felt like quitting acting, but felt that I should go to Chandigarh for some time, collect money and then return.
‘Rakh’ is streaming on Amazon Prime Video. In this, Ramandeep Yadav has played the character of Rajjo.
Question: Then how were the ‘ashes’ found?
answer: I went to Chandigarh for a few days. Then the call for audition of ‘Rakh’ came. The special thing was that the audition was sent by the same casting team which had selected me for ‘CAT’ four years ago. What made me most happy was that even after so many years, he remembered me and tested me for the lead role.
At that time I felt that perhaps God was giving me another chance. I told myself not to take the middle path anymore. I will use my full strength for this opportunity. Prepared with full sincerity and finally got this role.
Question: How did you prepare to play a dangerous character like ‘Rajjo’?
answer: When I read the script for the first time, I got emotional. The story was so deep and cruel that its impact was felt as soon as you read it. After this I kept Ramandeep aside and started thinking only about Rajjo. I wanted Rajjo’s gait, voice, thinking, habits and behavior to be different.
Because of theatre, I have the habit of creating characters. I not only remember the dialogues, but also think about what he would eat, how he would walk, how he would talk and how he would look at the world. Luckily, I got a 12-day acting workshop for this show. That helped a lot in understanding the character.
Question: Which was the most difficult scene during the shooting?
answer: Two scenes were the most difficult for me. The first one, in which Rajjo kills Sahil for the first time. That day I was completely immersed in the character. After several takes, it really felt as if I had killed someone. I was not myself even after being on the set for half a day.
The second scene was when Rajjo goes to dispose of Sahil’s body. There too I was completely in the mental state of the character. My effort was to make Rajjo not appear just a villain. I wanted the audience to see the person inside him too. He is a wrong person, but there is a mentality behind his decisions. I played this character with the same thinking.
Question: What kind of response are you getting from the audience after the release of ‘Rakh’?
answer: The response from the audience has been better than expected. People say that I have played the character very well. Many people also say that if they had been around, they would have definitely killed us. For me, this is the biggest compliment because it means that people are hating my character. That means I have done my work honestly.
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