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I am not an industry insider: Gaurav Ghatnekar
Actor Gaurav Ghatnekar says he has to make the most of the opportunities he gets
Actor Gaurav Ghatnekar was last seen in Priyanka Chopra’s Marathi production Kaay Re Rascalaa (2017). After this, he signed four films, unfortunately none of them took off. However, Gaurav did not let this bog him down and made most of the opportunities available to him. “The hard part of our industry is that you cannot predict anything. It was crazy how none of the films I signed, in that period, took off. I was upset for a while but I did not let that affect me,” says Gaurav, who went on to do a web film Veergati, which has him play a Kashmiri local.
Interestingly, the actor was offered this film, just two days before the shoot began. While he did not have time to prep for the role, he was confident of doing it, as it was different and something he had not attempted before. Gaurav says, “I made it here on my own. I am not an industry insider nor do I have connections. So, I know for a fact that I have to make the most of the opportunities available. I am a trained actor, but a complete outsider.”
On selecting roles and choosing projects, he recalls his acting guru Naseeruddin Shah’s “golden” words. “Sir had once told me, an actor picks projects because of two reasons, one, if it offers good money and two, if the role is really exciting. Now, I understand how true his words are. There are times when you have to take up projects for the money, because it is your bread and butter, and you have a family to support. And, then there are times, when the role is brilliant and you grab it irrespective of the money.”
Gaurav’s wife and actor, Shruti Marathe, also runs a company where they make ad films, short films and other creative elements. Moving forward, the couple would like to explore the web more. “We want to put forth content that we, as actors, would enjoy seeing or being a part of. The digital space is definitely the way forward,” he says.
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