Actor Ronit Roy is everywhere. Of late, he has emerged as directors’ favourite for meaty supporting roles. This year alone, he has played father to Kartik Aryan in Shehzada, a vengeful police officer in Aditya Roy Kapoor’s Gumraah, and most recently, a drug lord in Shahid Kapoor-starrer action thriller Bloody Daddy. “The main reason I did Bloody Daddy was to work with (director) Ali Abbas Zafar. I have always admired him. Secondly, my role in the Hindi adaptation is much larger than the French original, Sleepless Night. It is more dramatically played out and the character has an edge to it,” he says.
That, however, does not mean that the actor takes up every part that comes his way. In fact, he admits having refused a project “every 15 days” in recent times. He says, “The problem with casting now is that for typical roles, they shortlist three or four actors. Then they simply try to sign any one of them, irrespective of what the character demands.” Recalling that he even declined a Christopher Nolan (of Batman fame) film for similar reasons, the actor adds, “The part was too insignificant. I don’t want to just fill spaces; it is insulting to my craft.”
The journey to the point where he has the liberty and conviction to pick and choose roles was not easy. Roy has had a roller-coaster ride in showbiz. His debut film Jaan Tere Naam (1992) had a dream run of 25 weeks, but it was not followed by equally good opportunities. What finally got him into the limelight was playing a grey-shaded businessman in Ekta Kapoor’s tele soap, Kasautii Zindagii Kay in the 2000s.
A decade later, he delivered yet another unforgettable performance in Vikramaditya Motwane’s Udaan.
“I made wrong choices and did not have a good film for several years. So, it’s been a rough ride, but in the end it turned out just fine,” he says.
With a three-decade-long career, Roy is undeniably a seasoned actor. He has done TV, commercial films (Student Of the Year, Kaabil, 2 States) and parallel cinema (Anurag Kashyap’s That Girl in Yellow Boots and Midnight’s Children by Deepa Mehta). He also forayed into Telugu film industry in 2017 with NTR Jr-starrer Jai Lava Kusa. He made his OTT debut four years ago with crime drama, Line of Descent, and went on to star in acclaimed projects such as Bhoomi and Hostages.
“I have worked across formats, but my career is pretty much the same even after OTT. I am taking small steps and doing good work,” he says. Roy will be next seen playing the lead in a film, titled Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo. The middle-age love story will also star Paoli Dam and Sonali Kulkarni. There is also Bade Miyan Chote Miyan with Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff, scheduled for release later this year. “Then, I will be hosting crime drama series and I also have two web shows,” he adds.
Evidently, the 57-year-old actor is only getting started, and has a long career bucket list—from venturing into international cinema to attending “the biggest award ceremonies in the world”. “Right now, I am in the best shape of my life. My diet, fitness, everything is in order, and I am inclined to better myself each day. I have another 25-30 years ahead of me, and that’s a long time,” he says.