Brought back by intrigue

Abhishek Bajaj

It has been almost six years since Abhishek Bajaj featured in the television show, Bitti Business Wali (2018). The actor has been busy with films after making his debut with Student of the Year 2 (2019), followed by Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui (2021) and Madhur Bhandarkar's Babli Bouncer (2022). While he doesn't like being referred to as a TV actor, Bajaj has no qualms starring in a daily soap provided it is a "different role from his previous characters". "The story of Jubilee Talkies intrigued me. After the narration, I found the concept and my role unconventional," says the actor, who plays a superstar in the TV show.

"It's an intense love story of a superstar and a common girl. The best part is that it is a shot like a film," shares Bajaj, who in the past refused his share of daily soaps owing to lacklustre and conventional characters. "The shows I turned down were conventional, centred around kitchen politics and saas-bahu dramas. I want people to evolve. I want to offer viewers a different and a dream-like world," he says, adding that in the last five years, he has refused over 80 TV shows.

Remind him that the target audience - mainly women at home - enjoy saas-bahu dramas, and Bajaj is quick to point out that it's the creators' job to keep changing the mould. "I believe the audiences will love such [content] unless they are made to [experience] different stories. There is nothing wrong in enjoying such content, but I prefer being part of stories that have not been told yet," explains Bajaj, adding that the journey may be tough, but with "patience, skills and honesty
to the craft," no dream can be left unrealised.