Actor Siddhant Chaturvedi
Actor Siddhant Chaturvedi

Far and few, but always new

Actor Siddhant Chaturvedi may not hog your screens with a film every few months, but he ensures he remains memorable. His latest film 'Yudhra' shows how
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For Gully Boy, he learnt how to rap. For Inside Edge, he picked up bowling. For Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, he developed an aptitude for standup comedy. Siddhant Chaturvedi is Bollywood’s rising star, and he has his ever-expanding skill set to thank. The newest expertise displayed by the 31-year old actor, in his latest film Yudhra, is throwing swift, agile and impactful punches and kicks. Chaturvedi is now a jiu jitsu practitioner.

“Now, whenever I get the time, I fly off to Bali to train in jiu-jitsu and MMA. I like physical intelligence and will keep learning these sports even if I don’t do action movies. In fact, I want to keep learning different crafts that can help my work. I like to explore them as creative outlets,” he says.

Directed by Ravi Udyawar, Yudhra is an action thriller and also features Malavika Mohanan and Raghav Juyal. The film, which was released on September 20, had been in the making for the last four years. But, Chaturvedi says that he wasn’t worried. “Some films take longer to release due to certain reasons.

I had faith in the producers (Excel Entertainment’s Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar). They were instrumental in giving me my first film and web show, and now, I am doing my first solo film with them too. They are the game-changers in the industry, and make path-breaking films,” says the actor, who is only six years old in the industry.

For a newcomer though, Chaturvedi appears to be too picky. Since his debut in 2016 with the TV series Life Sahi Hai, he only has six films and two shows to his credit. The actor says that it’s been a conscious decision. “It’s not that I am too choosy. I just don’t want to do similar kinds of roles. If I had to do that, why would I act? I could have simply taken up a mundane job. I get bored by repetitions. After Gully Boy, I got offers for similar roles.

Everyone advised that I should do romantic roles as I am young. But, I like diversity,” he says, adding, “I have been striving to do something different every time for myself as well as the audience. Sometimes, these experiments don’t work. People may not appreciate me in certain roles, but I am ready to take risks. I don’t know how long it will work, but at least I still have the freedom to choose.”

He decided to do his next film, Dhadak 2, to that very end. The film, a remake of the 2018 Tamil film Pariyerum Perumal, will explore the realities of caste oppression and discrimination. “I like to keep the surprise element intact. I believe that rarity is greater than relevance.

I am not afraid that I won’t get work because I am not seen. If the audience forgets me, I will come back and take up something new that will make them notice me,” he says.

He is also not bogged down by box-office pressure. “Yudhra has the best sound design, action and dialogues. I hope more people will watch it as that will get converted into box office earnings. But, these are things that are beyond our control, and I like to focus on things that I can control,” says the actor, who is clearly wise beyond his years.

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The New Indian Express
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