Priyanka Chopra, Sanjay Dutt and Ram Charan Teja in a still from Zanjeer
New Delhi:
Newcomer Ankur Bhatia, who is making his Bollywood debut with Zanjeer, may have no dialogues in the movie but is more than happy to begin his career with the remake of Amitabh Bachchan's yesteryear hit.
Apoorva Lakhia's remake of 1973 classic will see Tollywood superstar Ram Charan playing the role of Bachchan and actress Priyanka Chopra as his lady love.
In the film, Ankur plays a right-hand man of the villain played by Prakash Raj. The actor believes Zanjeer is a perfect start to his career in Bollywood.
"I was in New York for past 2-3 years acting in independent cinema. But Indians in US don't get lead roles and I was constantly being told that my face is too Indian.
Finally, I thought I should move to India and try doing something close to my roots.
"I came to Mumbai and was exploring opportunities when I met Apporva Lakhia... He didn't offer me Zanjeer then but after a few months offered me a small role. Although I don't have many lines, there are few crucial action sequences... One of them being with Sanjay Dutt. I thought it was a good option for getting into Bollywood. It is my first feature film and I am happy working with well-known names," Ankur said.
The actor recalled how he was scared about fighting against Dutt in the scene.
"I was very scared to be up against Sanjay Dutt, since he is such a senior actor. I was hoping that the action sequence doesn't happen in the beginning of the movie shoot. Thankfully it was towards the end and by then I had prepared myself for it," he said.
Ankur is also a writer and has written a short film, which is now owned by Anil Kapoor. The film is set to star Anil's son Harshvardhan Kapoor and Katrina Kaif's sister Isabel.
"I had written the film for myself but got caught with other acting assignments and couldn't star in it. Eventually, I sold it to Anil Kapoor and now he is going to make it. I don't know if he has started working on the project but I hope he does justice to the script," he said.
Ankur knows it is going to be a difficult journey in Bollywood but believes his talent would not let him down.
"Knowing that it is very difficult to enter the industry without a support was holding me back from joining it for the longest time. I didn't know anybody when I came to Mumbai but slowly started meeting people, hired a manager. You might not get a chance once or twice but if you are good you will eventually get something."
Ankur is satisfied with playing a character role in his first movie and is not worried about being typecast.
"I am not worried about being typecast into an action hero or villain. I am pretty open to anything right now. In fact, I have already got an offer for a Telugu movie."
"Zanjeer" is slated to release on September 6.
Apoorva Lakhia's remake of 1973 classic will see Tollywood superstar Ram Charan playing the role of Bachchan and actress Priyanka Chopra as his lady love.
In the film, Ankur plays a right-hand man of the villain played by Prakash Raj. The actor believes Zanjeer is a perfect start to his career in Bollywood.
"I was in New York for past 2-3 years acting in independent cinema. But Indians in US don't get lead roles and I was constantly being told that my face is too Indian.
Finally, I thought I should move to India and try doing something close to my roots.
"I came to Mumbai and was exploring opportunities when I met Apporva Lakhia... He didn't offer me Zanjeer then but after a few months offered me a small role. Although I don't have many lines, there are few crucial action sequences... One of them being with Sanjay Dutt. I thought it was a good option for getting into Bollywood. It is my first feature film and I am happy working with well-known names," Ankur said.
The actor recalled how he was scared about fighting against Dutt in the scene.
"I was very scared to be up against Sanjay Dutt, since he is such a senior actor. I was hoping that the action sequence doesn't happen in the beginning of the movie shoot. Thankfully it was towards the end and by then I had prepared myself for it," he said.
Ankur is also a writer and has written a short film, which is now owned by Anil Kapoor. The film is set to star Anil's son Harshvardhan Kapoor and Katrina Kaif's sister Isabel.
"I had written the film for myself but got caught with other acting assignments and couldn't star in it. Eventually, I sold it to Anil Kapoor and now he is going to make it. I don't know if he has started working on the project but I hope he does justice to the script," he said.
Ankur knows it is going to be a difficult journey in Bollywood but believes his talent would not let him down.
"Knowing that it is very difficult to enter the industry without a support was holding me back from joining it for the longest time. I didn't know anybody when I came to Mumbai but slowly started meeting people, hired a manager. You might not get a chance once or twice but if you are good you will eventually get something."
Ankur is satisfied with playing a character role in his first movie and is not worried about being typecast.
"I am not worried about being typecast into an action hero or villain. I am pretty open to anything right now. In fact, I have already got an offer for a Telugu movie."
"Zanjeer" is slated to release on September 6.
