Hungama’s second series, Hankaar, depicts a Mumbai that is ruled by a dreaded underworld don Z who ensures that every major criminal business in the city belongs to him. We speak with Ujjwal Chopra (Z, an underworld don), Rajesh Balwani (Pradeep, a real estate agent) and Ram Menon (Joy, a techie). The show is directed by Sanjay Bhatia, Ravi Iyer and Yogi Chopra, while Tarun Rajput serves as the creative director.
Excerpts from a conversation with the actors:
How did you get on board?
Rajesh Balwani: I didn’t audition for the part. I knew the directors, Ravi and Sanjay, even before we began work on this series. Hankaar doesn’t have a conventional approach towards crime and I liked all the characters. Hence, I was interested to be a part of it.
Ujjwal Chopra: I have worked with Sanjay on several projects. We met at director Yogi’s place when they pitched me Hankaar. I didn’t understand a lot then but they insisted I will once shooting began. That is how I signed on to play my first negative character.Ram Menon: Yogi knew me first through a film called Speechless that went viral. As an actor, I wanted to experiment from what I had done earlier and so chose Hankaar.
Could you elaborate about your respective roles?
RB: I play a broker, and wanted to play it in a simple and sweet way. Unlike the other characters, the conflict surrounding me is external, and so, I had to make sure I don’t go overboard with emotions.
UC: My character does not express much and has to hide his true intentions. It is easily the most challenging role I have ever played.
RM: I play a hacker. Personally, I am somewhat tech-savvy but nowhere close to the level the character demanded. I managed to do some basic research about hacking and darknet and also learned from some friends. At the end of the day, however, what matters is only the emotions. The audience won’t measure my performance with my computer skills.
What differences have you experienced in working for television as opposed to films?
RB: When it comes to TV serials, it is absolutely fine to give 60-70% as we are constantly running against time. I don’t have the liberty to reshoot and my first take has to be my best. Also people don’t pause and judge me for each and every single expression, unlike in cinema.
UC: The way we shot Hankaar was very different from Padmaavat. A director like Sanjay Leela Bhansaali is particular about everything. Even if I move my eyes a tad more than I should, he will ask why I did so. Web series gives you a lot of freedom despite us shooting in real locations amongst real people. On the other hand, we shot Padmaavat in a controlled environment and we had to maintain pin-drop silence.
RM: Cinema is about continuity, because the story isn’t shot chronologically. You have to play it subtly. I guess I would say it’s the same with web series too.
So it wasn’t really a big change for me.
What is your takeaway from having been part of Hankaar?
RB: Working with Hankaar reminded me of my time in Swades. I liked the integrity that was present throughout.
UC: The way we have shot Hankaar is very realistic and engaging.
RM: I interacted with the green screen a lot and was thrilled when a real character joined me. The roles were so well-written that I was jealous of other roles too.