Entertainment
Vivek Oberoi’s Bold Move: Walking Away from His Father’s Launch and the 18-Month Struggle That Followed
Vivek Oberoi’s Bold Move: Walking Away from His Father’s Launch and the 18-Month Struggle That Followed
Celebrated for his powerful performances, Vivek Oberoi recently opened up about his life, which has been full of highs and lows. Looking back on his early career, he disclosed that he turned down a movie his father had intended to help launch him with to forge his route. Vivek discussed a pivotal point in his early career—passing up his father’s planned Bollywood launch—in an interview . Despite the security his father’s film provided, he chose not to use it since he felt compelled to make his way in life. This choice sparked an 18-month battle characterized by uncertainty and rejection. But Vivek sees that difficult time as a badge of honor, highlighting how proud he is to have earned his position in the field on his terms. He stated, “I am proud of that decision, even though I walked away from that opportunity, struggled for 18 months afterward, and encountered a lot of rejection.”
Vivek, who made his feature debut with the Company in 2002, talked about the difficult process he had to go through to land the part. When he was first turned down by Ram Gopal Varma, the filmmaker thought his refined and well-educated look went against the rough, slum-dwelling persona of Chandu. Despite Varma’s conviction that he wasn’t qualified for the role, Vivek was determined to prove himself and asked for a meeting. The Saathiya actor pursued an unusual route in an attempt to land his part in the Company. He chose to rent a room in a neighboring slum rather than return home after RGV advised him to wait three weeks for a meeting. “I didn’t go home from his office; I went straight to a nearby slum, took a room there, paid the rent, and moved into it,” he recalled. I spent three weeks there. To improve his portrayal of Chandu, a slum resident, Vivek Oberoi immersed himself in the community and noted and documented the speech and behavior of the people. He recruited a struggling photographer to finish his makeover, offering him the opportunity to shoot his first magazine cover if he was successful.
To guarantee his position in the company, Vivek played the part of Chandu in his last encounter with Ram Gopal Varma. Wearing a tattered waistcoat, ill-fitting trousers, and shabby slippers, he completed the transition while holding a beedi. The actor walked confidently into Varma’s office, kicked open the door, and tossed his character-driven photos onto the desk. The director was so struck by his passionate, unshakable performance that he offered him the part right away. Even when the director had to order him to quit smoking in his office, the actor, devoted to the role, refused to deviate from it. Working with the Company’s innovative director was a dream come true for Vivek, who found that every step of his grueling journey was worthwhile.
Also Read: How Much Did Shah Rukh Khan Charge for Attending a Delhi Wedding? Makeup Artist Reveals the Truth
In the meantime, Vivek Oberoi hasn’t been seen on the big screen in a long time. His most recent role was in PM Narendra Modi, a biographical drama released in 2019.