Here’s how Uday Mahesh bagged the role of Chellam sir in ‘The Family Man 2’

Manoj Bajpayee’s Srikant Tiwari in The Family Man season 2 needs no guidance, except when he finds himself in a sticky situation and Chellam sir promptly comes to his rescue. The retired spy, played by actor Uday Mahesh, of the popular espionage thriller series has inspired several memes and has become the talk of the town across the nation. Fans of this “super conscious” ex-intelligence officer have demanded a spin-off series with their favourite Chellam sir as the protagonist. The actor has revealed that not only is he ready for the spin-off, he’s also happy to reprise his role in the upcoming third season.

When asked if a spin-off series for Chellam would interest him, Mahesh told PTI, “If I get an offer like that, I would definitely love to do it. Even for Family Man 3, if they’ll call me, I’ll be up for it."

The story behind Mahesh getting cast for the role of Chellam is an interesting one. The 51-year-old Tamil writer and director had auditioned for the role of Dheepan, who is a senior Sri Lankan Tamil fighter in the series. This role went to Azhagam Perumal, followed by two months of radio silence from The Family Man’s team. Mahesh then received a callback where the team offered him the role of Chellam. Owing to The Family Man’s popularity, Mahesh was game to take up the extended cameo.

Mahesh also shared how Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK explained the character of Chellam to him, “They said this is a retired spy who helps Srikant and they have worked together some time in the past. He is a super conscious spy. It was an interesting part."

Chellam’s eccentricities have made it big on social media, with every other meme depicting a scene from The Family Man 2. Some memes have called Chellam sir the Google in Srikant’s life, since the character helps the protagonist out everytime things are stagnant.

Mahesh, who holds a diploma in chemical engineering from Central Polytechnic College, expressed his astonishment at the role becoming so popular. “I liked the role because there was a comical touch to it. We never thought this was going to be so huge,” he told the agency.

The actor further told PTI that he was originally interested in joining the Merchant Navy, but that dream did not take off, “I could not join the Merchant Navy due to family pressure. When I was studying in college, I had a passion for cinema. But I didn't know how to get into it."

It was then that Mahesh met cinematographer Natarajan Subramaniam (alias Nutty), who gave him a chance to get into the industry. “Through Nutty, I got an entry into the industry as an assistant director. Slowly, I worked towards becoming a writer and director," he added. Mahesh made his directorial debut in 2006 with Naalai, introducing Natraj as an actor in the process. Calling acting an accident that just happened, Mahesh went on to star in films like Kabali and Madras Cafe.

In 2013, Mahesh got the opportunity to play the role of a funny don in Tamil black comedy Moodar Koodam. Director Naveen encouraged Mahesh to take the role up, despite his inhibitions. “I was reluctant to act. Naveen forced me and eventually I said yes. I wanted to be known as a writer-director, not an actor. There are so many great actors in the industry, comparatively I’m nothing," said Mahesh.

Shoojit Sircar’s Madras Cafe featured Mahesh as an intelligence officer. Talking about how he got offered the role, he told PTI, “Shoojit offered me a small character in Madras Cafe and I couldn’t refuse because I was getting to share screen space with John Abraham."

Elaborating on his time at The Family Man, Mahesh said that it was a “delight and honour” to work with Bajpayee. The actor also said that he is keen on acting in the series again. For the future, Mahesh is planning to write and direct more, especially in Tamil.