After recently garnering accolades for two back-to-back projects, the actor is only just getting started
Nearly 12 years ago, Gulshan Devaiah made his debut with Anurag Kashyap’s That Girl In Yellow Boots. While it was not what one would consider a star’s debut, it brought to us one of the most versatile actors in Hindi cinema today. Devaiah later starred in hits like Shaitan (2011), Ram Leela (2013), A Death In The Gunj (2017), and Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota (2018), all garnering critical and commercial success alike.
Recently, he has been receiving a lot of love for projects like Badhaai Do, where he essayed the role of Rajkummar Rao’s partner. The duo together, and Devaiah especially, with his charming portrayal of a gay lawyer, made it a point to make love—in all its shapes and colours—seem aspirational. He was also one of the pivotal characters in Prime Video’s Dahaad, where he played the role of the cop Devilal rather deftly.
Presently, he finds himself reveling in the acclaim for Guns & Gulaabs, a cinematic venture by Raj and DK, in which he shares the screen with Rao, Adarsh Gourav and Dulquer Salmaan. His portrayal of the character Chaar-Cut Atmaram has carved out a devoted fan base among viewers, and rightfully so.
In a chat with The Established, Devaiah opens up about his craft, his process and the love he holds for acting. Excerpts from the interview.
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Recently, the actor has been receiving a lot of love for projects like Badhaai Do, where he essayed the role of Rajkummar Rao’s partner. Image: Instagram.com/@gulshandevaiah78
In Guns & Gulaabs, your character is absolutely eccentric. How do you navigate the challenge of bringing to life a character so wonderfully wacky while ensuring its authenticity and believability?
I think the most important thing is to accept the reality of the character the way it is written because if you don’t, then you can’t find the honesty. The second thing is to completely submit to the sensibilities of the people who are telling the story, in this case, the directors and writers. For instance, Raj and DK have their own sensibilities, Anurag Kashyap has his own, and so do David Dhawan and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Every filmmaker has a different way of telling a story, and it is only when you understand it, will you be able to find the truth of the story and your character. Both these aspects are paramount. If this happens, the other stuff is easier.
You've collaborated with several exceptional filmmakers, from Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Bejoy Nambiar to Anurag Kashyap and Konkana Sen Sharma, each with a distinct style. Now, with Raj and DK, is embracing the filmmaker's vision and script a seamless process for you?
It really depends on how they [the directors] are, which is why I said it’s crucial to know and understand who you are working with, and what their style is. Some people are more particular about their written material, so you know that you don’t have a lot of scope to deviate from it, and sometimes you shouldn’t either–it depends on the project. I don’t want to get used to just one way of working because then it will just be ‘my’ way of working. Sometimes it’s nice when there are restrictions, and you work with different styles that push you to come up with something new because you wouldn’t have gone on your own there otherwise. There are directors who’ve told me not to blink a lot, which is honestly irritating at times, but it’s also interesting to see how to make a character believable when you are not blinking.
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Devaiah shares screen space with Rao, Adarsh Gourav and Dulquer Salmaan in his recent Raj and DK venture Guns & Gulaabs
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The actor was also seen playing a cop in Amazon Prime Video's Dahaad earlier this year
The discourse around acting often involves deliberations on the merits of method acting and whether it can be taken to extremes. What is your perspective on this? Do you engage in meticulous preparation or are you instinctive as an actor?
I would not classify myself as a method actor. Having said that, I have not studied acting, so I don’t know if I have the expertise to comment on the different styles of acting. I think different people have different approaches.
In the 1940s and ’50s in the United States, 'method acting' became popular, and it was Marlon Brando who is credited from across the world to have brought attention to it. It was really useful because it laid stress on truthfulness and depicting characters and emotions realistically. But since then, the process has been romanticised and publicised, almost to an extent that sometimes when certain actors discuss the behind-the-scenes process, it seems more like a gimmick than reality.
So like every good thing, people sometimes take it and run it to the ground. Unfortunately, the whole reputation of 'method acting' has suffered greatly because of insincerity.
I personally feel my process is mine, and I shouldn’t burden other people. Sometimes, some people have processes that are very burdensome on others because everything becomes about them. I’ll give you an example of Daniel Day Lewis, whom I really admire, but he himself admitted that his process becomes burdensome and everything has to fall in place according to it, which is not nice.
My process—whatever it is—happens at the pre-production stage, so that once we start production, I can interact with everyone else, from co-stars to writers to the Director of Photography (DOP), and create something together. At that point, it can’t be all about me.
How do you go about selecting scripts? Is there a deliberate intention to explore uncharted territories and defy conventional norms in your choice of roles?
I am responsible for curating my career, and I’d like it to be as diverse as possible. I don’t really hustle for projects a lot, but when things come to me, I try to think of it as 'what does this do for my diversity.?' Of course, I have to have genuine interest and a connection with the story but I do consider how it would help my trajectory.
I like doing all kinds of things and watching all kinds of stuff, except horror, which is why you’ll never see me in a horror film. Besides that, I am curious to see myself in different roles. For starters, I never thought I could be a part of a [Sanjay Leela] Bhansali film, but I was, and I learned something about myself from that experience. So, I am conscious of that versatility, but it’s not rigid; not everything has to be diverse—genuine interest is paramount. Also, diversity takes time; you can’t be diverse in three years. It can only be realised in hindsight.
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Devaiah in a still from Guns & Gulaabs. Image: IMDB
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The actor in a still from Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota (2018). Image: IMDB
When looking at a script, are you conscious of the message it is trying to put forth?
I don’t believe roles are just roles; stories carry meaning—there’s a reason someone is attempting to convey it. It might hold a mirror, provide a perspective, or purely offer entertainment. A film like Dulhe Raja may not be attempting to convey a message, but we need such films as well. However, there needs to be sincerity in how you present and perform it, regardless of whether there's a message.
I will give you an example of a significant project that went on to achieve great success, but I didn’t want to be a part of it because I found it excessively violent, and I didn’t want to submit to that. As I mentioned earlier, you must accept the reality, and I couldn’t align with this character because I didn't want to endorse that kind of violence towards women.
How do you personally define success, particularly within an industry often reliant on quantitative measures? Has your understanding of success evolved throughout your journey?
The definition keeps changing, and it has to because you see things happening to people, or not happening to them, and you have to assess your way of looking at that. Success, for me, is a sense of satisfaction; it should fill your heart. It’s not about the reaction from people; of course, that is also important, but being content with what you’re doing is success. Also, the harder the achievement, the greater the satisfaction, as well as doing something that hasn’t been done before. I don’t think I will be as happy with a film that makes a hundred crore as I would be with doing something completely new.
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Devaiah doesn't think "roles are just roles," but they're mediums to convey a message. Image: Instagram.com/@gulshandevaiah78
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Devaiah in A Perfect Man (2022). Image: IMDB
Does being outspoken come at a cost? How do you balance taking a firm stand without incurring the usual repercussions of being assertive and forthright?
It probably does, but if you’re honest and you can put it in a manner that is not hurtful or stinging, then it’s alright. I saw a headline stating, ‘Gulshan Devaiah SLAMMED so and so…,’ but I was not slamming anyone, I was just voicing my opinion.
Such headlines in tabloids usually don’t bother me because I think before putting anything out there, though I have done some impulsive stuff too. Some years ago, for instance, there was this fiasco with the film Kabir Singh. There was a clip where Vijay Deverakonda is saying something, to which I reacted. I later realised I was a bit harsh. Even if my criticism was correct, I could have done it in a manner that would be critical but not personal or harsh—but then you learn from such mistakes.
What are your thoughts on OTT? Has it opened up new avenues for you?
There is definitely more work, and it’s a different business model, so it empowers writers and storytellers. This indirectly presents me with more opportunities, along with everyone else.
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