Rohan Gurbaxani on making a mark in Hollywood: Persistence pays

Rohan Gurbaxani

New York-based Rohan Gurbaxani has been making some quiet moves in Hollywood. Born in California, he spent his growing up years in Bengaluru only to return to the US to pursue acting. A graduate from the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, he features in the action-thriller Knuckledust starring Camille Rowe, Moe Dunford (Vikings) and Gethin Anthony (Game of Thrones), which releases on December 11. "I play a naive playboy whose wits get the better of him," he says about his character.

Gurbaxani has two films lined up --- the action thriller Red 48 featuring John Malkovich and Tyrese Gibson, and Confession starring Sarah Hay. Last month, he was seen in the action-comedy, Chick Fight, alongside Alec Baldwin, Malin Âkerman and Bella Thorne.

With no lineage in the entertainment industry, he charted his journey on his own merit. He was born in California and later moved to Bengaluru where he spent most of his growing up years. About being bitten by the acting bug, he says, "I did not have an epiphany moment. For me, acting is a cultivated passion; a gradual realisation. I was part of Shiamak Davar's dance classes. I used to perform in every dance competition. Looking back, I guess, I unknowingly always had a knack for performing, but no inclination towards acting."

When he was 12, his mother enrolled him at the Jagriti Theatre in Bengaluru. "That is when the seed was planted. It's funny I had zero acting experience in school, yet if you asked anyone from my adolescent years about what I'd end up doing in life they'd say, "He wants to be an actor." The irony being that none of them had ever seen me act. Somehow my lack of experience never stopped me from saying, 'I want to be an actor', even though I had no clue where to even begin. Luckily, my first sign of validation came when I got accepted at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University. It was only then I remember telling myself, "Alright… something can be done here."

Though his family is in the real estate business, they have been supportive of his decision. "A large part of this profession is persistence. Fresh out of school, I was able to sign with a talent agency and start discovering ways to create my own luck rather than wait for it. With time, I was fortunate enough to get the right auditions and the right opportunities," says Gurbaxani, who has also worked with New York City-based indie film production company, Yale Productions, as an assistant on their films, I Used To Go Here starring Gillian Jacobs and Becky starring Kevin James which did the film festival rounds.

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