Shreyas Talpade: Have to prove again I can do serious roles

Shreyas, who started out with intense films like Iqbal before being bracketed as a comic hero, hopes to shed the image with Kartam Bhugtam

Comedies are the first thing to come to your mind when you think of Shreyas Talpade. But with his next, Kartam Bhugtam, the actor wants to remind the audience that he is the same guy who headlined profound stories in the beginning of his career. “My first two films Iqbal [2005] and Dor [2006] were intense. At that time, I had to prove that I was good at comedy. Now, I have to prove again that I can do serious roles,” he laughs. 

After a few serious roles, Talpade featured in many laugh riots, including Om Shanti Om (2007), Welcome to Sajjanpur (2010) and the Golmaal franchise. But the actor says that over the past many years, he has been trying to change gears. “Around 2016 when Waah Taj didn’t work, I sensed that I had to expand my range of roles. In the meantime, I produced the Marathi film, Poshter Boyz [2014], then I starred in its Hindi remake, followed by [another instalment of] Golmaal. So, even though I was trying to reinvent, [only comedies were coming my way]. Plus, I was trolled by people who said, ‘These actors finally got a job because Golmaal is happening. They will only do this.’”

Kaun Pravin Tambe? (2022) and now Kartam Bhugtam—also starring Vijay Raaz and Madhoo—are Talpade’s answers to his naysayers. Glad to front the thriller, the actor states, “When you become successful in a genre, filmmakers want to cast you in that space. But you want to seek out scripts that go beyond what you’ve been typecast as. When you get something like Kartam Bhugtam, you feel, ‘Wow! Someone is seeing me in this light as well.’”

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