Ankit Raj: Taking a break from TV to pursue films and web show
To explore the film and OTT space further, Laado-2 and Ascharyachakit actor Ankit Raj has put in his papers for his on-going TV show …Garud
To explore the film and OTT space further, Laado-2 and Ascharyachakit actor Ankit Raj has put in his papers for his on-going TV show …Garud. After doing eight shows in seven years, the youngster feels that now is the right time to make the switch to films and OTT.
“I have left the show and am serving the notice period as I want to focus on my movie and web-series that will release later this year, and on new work. Now, I wish to take a break from TV and concentrate on the other mediums and for that I need to keep myself free from the daily soap drill,” says the actor.
Raj left his hometown Jabalpur (MP) to pursue modelling. “That’s what I wanted to do. So, my mother gave me ₹350 to keep it as a return ticket when I left for Delhi in 2009. By God’s grace, today I am financially settled in Mumbai and riding a foreign luxury car but lots more needs to be achieved.”
He recalls getting a call from Mumbai for the film Karle Pyar Karle (2014) and by the time it was released he got Qubool Hai (2015) and his TV journey started.
His tryst with the web gave him the boost to take it up seriously. “My debut web film Ascharyachakit (2018) was in the adult zone but it was very well received and till date I get messages for that from across the globe. Then I did Qubool Hai 2.0 which was a web series and being a finite story I enjoyed it a lot. Though I have learnt everything on the way on TV and owe a lot to the medium but my acting graph took a leap with the web.”
Raj adds, “TV is a lot of hard work but then you are there shooting madly without a direction. On film and series, I got the opportunity to live the character I am shooting. Like in the film Hindutva, directed by Karan Razdan, I play the protagonist’s friend who is an intense young Muslim student leader. So, I had so much to learn and work on my craft during the entire shoot period. Similarly, in the murder mystery series The Case of Gill I play boyfriend of the girl who is murdered so I had lot to give to my character. Now, it’s time to step up a little.”
And probably remembering ‘never say never’, he adds, “Someday, if I get a reality show like Khatron Ke Khiladi or a finite series then I would love to do that. But, no more of these never-ending daily soap sagas…! For now, I am keeping myself free for new projects coming my way and I may start shooting for a series soon.”
