Exclusive! Ritvik Sahore: I thought Laakhon Mein Ek will be a comedy show since Biswa Kalyan Rath had written it

College is one of the best times of one's life. However, the past year and a half have been all about online classes with rare to no opportunities to meet friends, bunk classes, or have fests and parties. But fret not, actor Ritvik Sahore is coming up with a new series that assures to get you to live and relive those days. The upcoming show Campus Diaries is a coming-of-age drama of five students that not only deals with the usual relationship and friendship stories but also explores issues like ragging, discrimination, one-sided love, drug abuse and toxic relationships. The show will release on January 7 on MX Player. Created by Prem Mistry and Abhishek Yadav, it also stars Harsh Beniwal, Ritvik Sahore, Saloni Gaur, Salonie Patel, Abhinav Sharma and Srishti Ganguli Rindani.    

In an exclusive chat with OTTPlay, Sahore speaks about his upcoming show Campus Diaries, his college life and how Laakhon Mein Ek helped me ace in his further performances. Excerpts:

The trailer of the show is out and has been receiving a great response about those befikre days to complications k din, which are usually the parts of a campus story. So, could you tell us how Campus Diaries is different from other campus dramas?

You got it right actually. Is show mein saari cheezein hai. In college shows that you usually get to see, it explores romantic relationships and friendship and it is what it has to it. But Campus Diaries has all of this and so much more to it. Mostly, it is about teenage life, figuring out life after college, the pressure to study and how some get into bad habits as well. There are a lot of things that go on in the minds of a teenager and the show deals with all that through different characters. I think that's what sets it apart from other college shows. When I read the script, in my honest opinion, it was one of the best scripts I have read in my career. When I read it, I called the director and told him to give me any role. I just wanted to be a part of it. Piche passing karne kak bhi de do, chalega! It was so much fun and it tackled every subject so well. 

You seem to be playing the role of this innocent cute boy in college who barges into the room of a friend and says 'mujhe sex karna hai'. Could you tell us more about your character?

I wouldn't say Abhilash is innocent but yes, he is a seedha saadha ladka. He wants to try out new things. He is someone who is always there for his friends. He is the buddy. Sudheer is his roommate and they are like brothers. There is also an important story behind that scene in the trailer. When you watch the show, you'll know it. 

What are your fond memories of college?

Since I am in this profession, I haven't been able to attend the college that regularly. Even when I did, I used to bunk a lot and go out for bike rides with my friends. We would eat and hang out. I have made some really good friends in college. In fact, we met each other recently and we are planning to watch the show together. We can live our college life again through this show. It has a nostalgic factor as well. One can reminisce about college life and relive it in case they missed it due to the COVID-19. 

How were you as a student? Were you notorious and disinterested like the character you played in Laakhon mein Ek or a frontbencher?

In Laakhon Mein Ek, he used to study science and that's never been my cup of tea. But I was not disinterested in studies. I enjoyed studying and spending time with friends also but yes, friends were mostly my priority. I passed the exams with good marks. 

How was the experience shooting for the series?

It was like a fun vacation. We shot for three months during the summer in Chandigarh. So it was extremely hot. The entire unit was good and fun. They were all nice and welcoming. We did a lot of masti mazak during the shoot. And Chandigarh is such a beautiful city. We shopped, ate and roamed around a lot. 

At a very young age, you worked with A-listers like Aamir Khan in Dangal and Hrithik Roshan in Super 30. How was the experience working with them?

It was amazing. Aamir sir is an institution in himself. Everyone knows that he is such a great actor but after working with him, I got to know that he is also a gem of a person. He made me feel so comfortable. He gives equal importance to everyone. He makes you feel special and I think that is very nice about him. After working with him, my respect for him has increased multifold. I don't have formal training in acting but I used to do plays in schools. I had some experience in the field but I learned so much from these amazing actors on these great projects. I get inspired by every project I do.

In an earlier interview, you had mentioned that OTT gives an advantage of more time to the actors so that they can explore the character more. Is that why you have done more web series than films?

That is not the reason actually. I am choosy with my scripts. I look for scripts that amuse me and I know I'd enjoy doing. Whatever interesting works I got offered have been mostly for OTT, by chance. But I'd equally love to do movies as well. Many times, when you want certain things, they don't work out as the requirements are different. But I am looking forward to doing movies. Watching on the big screen is the greatest feeling.

What are the factors you look into when you pick a project?

It's quite simple actually. I read all scripts like a book reader and audience. If it manages to crack me up when it has to or say, get me emotional reading an emotional scene, I do it. That's the important part for me. If I enjoy reading the script, I do it. Later, comes the factors like characters. The priority is the story and the content. 

Of all the characters you have played so far, which is your favourite?

My favourite would be Aakash from Laakhon Mein Ek. It was one of the first web shows. The concept of a web show was quite new. It was new and challenging and so, I had to do it. I discovered a lot about myself as an actor and person, working with professionals in the OTT space. I enjoyed it a lot. I got to tap into so many emotions. I learned a lot of techniques and skills. The show gets dark after a point and shooting continuously was mentally exhausting. I learned where to draw the line between work and personal life and that helped me further in my other projects. 

The show is written by Biswa Kalyan Rath...

I am a big fan of Biswa. When I got a call from the casting director of the show and he told me that the show is written by Biswa, I got sold. But I was expecting the show to be a comedy or something. I was blown away after reading the script. The show deals with an important subject. After watching the show, many people opened up about their experience of engineering and its toxicity. It made people aware of the situations in the field. 

What do you have to say about OTT censorship?

Freedom of speech should be there. But there are also some people who exploit it. There is a fine line between exploiting it and taking good advantage of it. If the OTT space is censored, a lot of things cannot be shown in real space. For instance, if you take college life, people do use foul language and that needs to be there in the show to make the experience more authentic. But again, many times, I have found them forced. So, it needs to be the individual's responsibility. That is the better way to go about it.