You must have seen Bollywood actor Mir Sarwar playing important roles in several films like Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Jolly LLB 2 and Kesari apart from featuring in some web series including The Family Man, Bard of Blood, Bhram and Special Ops. Now, he is all set to collaborate with Akshay Kumar for the third time in Laxmii.
Elaborating on his experience of working with Akshay Kumar, he says, “It’s always fun and good to have him around. Since it was the third time, it was even more comfortable. We mostly speak about fitness and martial arts. Our interaction was not much this time as our tracks were different. Mine is in the flashback and his is in the present. However, our one chunk of shoot was together and it felt good. He has always encouraged me since he has seen the growth in Bollywood himself.” Not just Akshay, Mir has also done films with Salman. Calling both actors “punctual and technically sound,” Mir quips that they are two different actors when it comes to their working style.
Mir plays a pivotal role in Laxmii. Talking about how he landed the role, he says, “I was approached by the makers as they wanted to meet me first. I look different in real life as compared to the pictures. After being shortlisted, I was finally confirmed. My character this time was challenging as I play a young character and its older version as well. So they wanted to make sure that I am able to pull off both the parts. I was told to watch the original Kanchana to get a hold on my character but I have tried to play the part according to myself. In fact, in Laxmii, I am playing a character which is a little emotional, otherwise I mostly play negative characters. Albeit, I am completely opposite in real life.”
Being from Kashmir where there were no movie theatres for the longest time, Mir has managed to get into mainstream Bollywood. Talking about the Indian film industry’s influence on him, he says, “I come from a family which was conservative and movies were a strict no-no. But when I saw a movie for the first time in the theatre, I fell in love with the idea of cinema. After 1990, I started watching movies on VCR and watched the debut films of Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, and others… I didn’t know I would take it as a profession, but I feel I was preparing myself for the industry. I always imagined myself doing something on the stage with people watching me. Finally, theatre happened and it changed my life.”
Apart from films, Mir has had a great presence on OTT as well. However, just like every actor, he also dreams of doing “good work”. “The films which release in theatres have their own charm and ultimately, all the actors want to do a film, even TV actors. But at the same time, now with OTT, all big actors and filmmakers are going towards the web, be it Anurag Kashyap, Kabir Khan or Raj & DK. Plus, the youth now remembers the “actor,” be it any platform. OTT is certainly the future,” he signs off.
