‘Baarish’ actor Sharman Joshi says he shared a wonderful connection with Rishi Kapoor and Irrfan Khan

Sharman Joshi, a fairly popular name in Bollywood, is in the limelight due to his latest release Baarish Season 2 that went live on ALTBalaji and Zee5 today. The show has created a fair deal of buzz among the taeget audience and this might help hit the bullseye. Speaking exclusively to DH, ‘Anuj’ opens up about working with veteran actor Jeetendra in the web series and his jouney as an artiste. The 3 Idiots star also talks about his bond with stalwarts Irrfan Khan and Rishi Kapoor, who passed away recently.

(Edited excerpts)

What prompted you to take up Baarish? How different is season 2 from its predecessor?

I wanted to work with Ekta (Kapoor) so when Baarish came my way, I took it up without asking too many questions. Coming to the second part, the characters are still the same honest people but they have learnt from their experiences and picked up their game.

How was the experience of working with Jeetendra in Baarish season 2?

I am huge fan of Jeetuji. I admire his discipline and the fact that he is still so excited about his work. He is quite a humble person despite being a big star. I was really excited about working with him and enjoyed the experience.

Do you prefer preparing for a role well in advance or are you more of a spontaneous actor?

There have been different phases in my career. Initially, it was all about learning the lines. Then, in the second phase, I focussed on extracting the right emotions for the situation/character. Now, in the OTT world it’s more about putting in the effort but coming across as casual/effortless.

Has your theatre background come in in handy?

My father was associated with theatre and in a way, I owe everything to the medium.

What is the key to survival in the industry?

I feel that there is no survival mantra as such. One can just do his (or her) best and hope that things fall in place.

Do you feel that your performances have received the kind of recognition they deserve?

This is a pessimist way of looking at things. I feel that as an artiste, I can only do a movie/role to the best of my abilities and hope (for the best).

The film world recently lost two stellar performers—Irrfan Khan and Rishi Kapoor.

I had had a wonderful connection with them. With Irrfan, I had limited interaction as we did only one film together. I, however, have a special memory of him as he told me that I was fabulous in Metro. I had a personal bond with Rishiji through my in laws. He was passionate about my career and took an interest (in my work)