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EXCLUSIVE: Randeep Hooda opens up on CAT, boycott culture, OTT vs theatre, directorial venture and marriage
As CAT is set to arrive on December 9, Pinkvilla exclusively caught up with Randeep and spoke about his experience. He also shared his views on the boycott culture, OTT vs theatre trend and more.
Actor Randeep Hooda has time and again managed to impress the audience with his solid body of work. Every time he takes up a new project, the audience eagerly waits to watch his stellar act. The actor is currently busy promoting his upcoming series, CAT which is slated to release on Netflix. The trailer and promo of CAT have left his fans intrigued. He will be seen essaying the role of a police informant Gurnaam Singh in the Balwinder Singh Janjua directorial. The crime thriller is set against the backdrop of the Punjab hinterlands. As CAT is set to arrive on December 9, Pinkvilla exclusively caught up with Randeep and spoke about his experience. He also shared his views on the boycott culture, OTT vs theatre trend and more.
What made him say yes to CAT
The actor shared he was mighty impressed by the script of CAT. He said, "Well, it was a script. To begin with, it was a very intriguing script, which goes over two timelines and deals with the two most affecting eras of Punjab since the partition, which were the insurgency and the drug pandemic that had hit (Punjab). I'm not sure what stage it is now. But that was a very interesting backdrop for the character. It is a good human drama unfolding in front of it. Also, I had worked with Balwinder Singh Janjua in a movie called Tera Kya Hoga Lovely, which was a social comedy and we really gelled well. The character was very layered and great and it was quite a no-brainer to say yes to this. And I thoroughly enjoyed doing it."
Why is the audience inclined towards OTT content over theatres?
The Sarbjit actor also spilled the beans on everyone's inclination towards OTT. On being asked why he thinks people are not going to theatres to watch films, he stated, "I don't know, I am not an expert at it. What I feel is that people consumed a lot of diverse content and from all over the world, actually, during the pandemic, for two years, we were all shut in our rooms. So that kind of led to a change in the people's consumption of content, of any kind of cinema. So if it doesn't have good content and engaging things, just the razzle-dazzle is not working anymore. So I think it's because of that, it's people would still turn to the theater, it's like watching a cricket match at home and watching it in the stadium. So that experience will never go out. It's I think just the movies made pre-pandemic were targeted at an audience, which was drastically different from what it is now. So I think that's the whole thing. And going ahead in the future, I think there will have to be a balance between the razzle-dazzle and actual meat in the story, which people will not accept if it's not there."
Does boycott culture affect a film's release?
Recently, Aamir Khan's Laal Singh Chaddha and Akshay Kumar's Raksha Bandhan faced massive backlash on social media. Netizens were seen boycotting the films which resulted in poor box office performance. Randeep shared his thoughts on the same and said that boycott culture cannot affect a film’s release. He said, "I'm not sure. But I think this boycott culture on Twitter, Indians or the movie-going main audience is not really on Twitter and I don't think this really affects them. It might have to do with what they put out and what the people might be wanting. So I think a lot of times, we do make the mistake of pandering to an audience, whereas we don't really know them. So the moment we start making stories from our own point of view, and us as artists as an audience, it will automatically translate into something because the consumption of art is an individualistic thing, and it has to be an individualistic approach to bring it to people. If you go generic, then you might not touch anybody."
On coming up with a project on OTT as a director
Randeep is set to make his directorial debut with the film Swatantrya Veer Savarkar. Earlier, the film was being helmed by Mahesh Manjrekar. Does he now plan to come up with a project on OTT as a director? He firmly responded, "I had no plans to venture into direction. This is just kind of one thing led to another. I have no future plans with it."
On marriage
Recently, Randeep made his relationship official with Mary Kom actress Lin Laishram. Reportedly, they have been dating for quite some time. On Diwali this year, they made their relationship official. On being asked about his marriage plans, the actor chose not to speak about it. He concluded the conversation by saying, "I have no interest in talking about all that with anybody."
ALSO READ: Randeep Hooda and Lin Laishram make their relationship official; See PICS
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