Roshan Mathew on why Ashu in Kankhajura is once-in-a-lifetime kind of character: ‘It is absolute goldmine for any actor’ | Exclusive
In an exclusive chat with OTTplay, Roshan Mathew spoke about why he chose to play Ashu in Kankhajura, terming it as a once-in-a-lifetime kind of character. The Hindi web series is streaming on OTTplay
Last Updated: 11.40 AM, Jul 09, 2025
Despite starting off in Malayalam cinema, Roshan Mathew has been able to leave a mark in the Hindi industry with his performances in movies such as Darlings. He recently hogged attention for his performance in the Hindi series Kankhajura, which is streaming on SonyLiv and OTTplay Premium. So when OTTplay caught up with Roshan Mathew for an exclusive chat, Roshan spoke about why he chose to play Ashu in Kankhajura, terming it as a once-in-a-lifetime kind of character.
Roshan Mathew - From Zulfi in Darlings to Ashu in Kankhajura
For the Hindi audience, Roshan Mathew went from being the very innocent Zulfi in the Alia Bhatt film Darlings, who often gets played, to the complex Ashu in Kankhajura. During an exclusive chat with OTTplay, Roshan spoke about what excited him to play Ashu.
“I had a lot of fun playing Ashu in Kankhajura. Right from when I first read the project and I spoke to the director, I knew it was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime kind of character. It is an absolute goldmine for any actor, so that’s the primary reason why I wanted to do it,” he explained.
Directed by Chandan Arora, the series revolves around Ashu, who is finally freed from prison after 14 years and meets up with his brother Max (played by Mohit Raina). Though his brother is initially excited to see him back, Max’s friends do not share the excitement.
Talking about the team helped him in bringing out the best performance, Roshan said, “I am just really glad that my director Chandan Arora and my co-actors, especially Mohit Raina, and cinematographer Rajeev Ravi, all of them contributed with the right kind of interest in me becoming the best version of Ashu.”
Their inputs also meant that Roshan enjoyed the shooting process as well. “The shoot for which was as enjoyable otherwise working on a long-format series - a straight 60, 70-day schedule can also get frustrating or tiring. On Kankhajura, it was the exact opposite; each day on the set was supremely exciting and it says a lot about the team that you are working with. I am very glad that I got to play Ashu with the people I worked with,” he added.
Roshan Mathew was last seen in the Malayalam film Ronth, which has yet to announce its OTT partner. His 2022 film Paradise, also starring Darshana Rajendran, is currently streaming on Mubi.