Exclusive! Anant Vidhaat on Tiger 3: The enormity of Salman Khan’s stardom doesn’t allow him to show his warmth

After working on big-banner projects like Gunday, Mardaani, Tiger Zinda Hai and Sultan, actor Anant Vidhaat debuted on the OTT scene with Netflix’s Mai. While the talks are on for the second season of the thriller, Ananth has also completed shooting the third instalment of the Tiger franchise, Tiger 3. In an exclusive chat with OTTplay, the actor opens up about his equation with Salman Khan, his OTT outings, and a lot more.

Talking about his equation with Salman Khan, Ananth says it is full of respect. “It may appear on screen that Salman Khan and I are very pally. However, he is senior to me and I have a lot of respect for him. Our interactions are not casual. But it is not very formal either. He shows a lot of love and cares for me. He is a superstar and I have grown up watching his films. Now I see his stardom from proximity. And it is intense. The enormity of his stardom does not allow him to be very friendly. But in reality, he is very warm and accessible,” says the actor.

Recalling Salman’s sense of humour on set, Anant elaborates, “During the rehearsals, as Girish Karnad introduces my character Karan to Tiger, Salman brings his Sultan-wala Haryanvi accent on and says, ‘Manne pata hai yeh kaun hai,’ and everyone bursts into laughter. This was just after Sultan and almost the entire crew was the same. Even in Tiger 3, Salman keeps asking about my work and life in general.”

Anant confirms that the primary shooting of Tiger 3 is over. “There can be patch shoots. I don’t think I’ll have any more days of shooting,” he says.

Anant’s OTT outing with Netflix, Mai, has also been renewed for a second season. “There will be a second season that we are aware of but there has been a halt and hence we do not know when the shooting will commence. Yes, the season cannot move forward without my character. I will be there in the second season,” says the actor.

On about his co-actors, especially Sakshi Tanwar, Ananth says that she is warm and loving. “When she is around, you never feel the pressure that an actress of such calibre is working with you. Your job becomes easy if you get a bunch of good co-actors. Mai is one such project,” he says.

Anant also thinks that the introduction of OTT has brought in a ‘win-win situation’ for the directors, actors and writers. “If the film is a director’s medium, OTT is an actor’s medium. There is a lot of work and a lot of involvement. Most importantly, since there is no pressure from the box office, one can take risks. A showrunner is not always bogged down with the thought if his project would work or not. People usually cast just the right actors for the roles. The focus is given to the characters and stories. A lot of good content are happening and makers are also picking the right actors. OTT is a boon for us,” he says.