In the time you make one series of 9-10 episodes, you can make 3 films.

The time I heard the script for Hathiram's character in 'Paatal Lok,' I was sure it is one of the best characters that I had ever been offered. I am extremely overwhelmed with the kind of responses that I am getting for the performance.

Who doesn't want to be a lead hero?

One should approach life with a realisation that nothing is permanent.

As soon as the director says action, an actor has to do the same work no matter if the screen is small or big.

Every one wants to play a lead, be it negative or positive and I'm no exception.

Even after my film 'Khatta Meetha,' I was jobless for a year.

You get onto the stage; you can shout and express yourself. Your negative energy gets consumed.

If one keeps working hard then no one can stop them.

I hope many think that I can also do vulnerable parts and not macho, antagonist parts in which they've seen me.

I don't think anyone will be able to answer why one did not get success from their work. It's just part of life. Sometimes your work is good, but the character does not fully reach the audience.

Most of the characters I've been offered have been very dominating and self-assured, maybe because of the way I look.

Hathi Ram's journey intrigued me. He is a very vulnerable character. I was never offered such a role of a man who is a failure in life and is desperate to prove himself. It was a good change for me to play someone with such a nice arc and so many shades to his personality.

When 'Raazi' released, I think I was ready to embrace complex roles and some challenging characters with responsibility and restraint.

There's a reason why you attach the luck factor to your hard work. You work hard in every film, but there's always that one film that comes at the right time and does the best for you.

Gangs Of Wasseypur' was a confidence booster for me.

I am ready to work hard, do comedy, romance and action. Just give me that trust.

I am okay with the fact that my work reaches out to the people.

We humans need to reboot and learn to have gratitude for our doctors, police officers, or those providing essential services, otherwise they would feel that it's a thankless job. They risk their lives for others and don't even get time for their own family. We need to be more compassionate, caring towards them instead of misbehaving.

When you are on a journey, every pit stop is your favourite.

Every actor has his own approach towards acting. I believe you do not become the character you are playing. You may get closer to it but you do not lose yourself. There's just a reflection of the character in you.

For an actor, his job becomes easy, when his character is described well on the paper. With a well-written role, it becomes simpler to design and understand your character.

Ever since my childhood, I had an urge to always stay in the limelight.

I am even ready to dance if someone is willing to write those parts for me.

Fame is a mirage.

Two directors always come with two thought processes.

Becoming the character you are playing might work for some, but for me, it doesn't. I always maintain a gap between myself and my character because if I will go so deep into it, it will get difficult for me to come back. You should work towards understanding the psyche of your character and then play it.

It's an extraordinary story told with simplicity. 'Raazi' is about people who put the country before anything else.

If you normally go quiet when you get angry, you may not relate to a character that reacts very differently. But if you see someone internalising the anger like you do, you will immediately identify with him or her. It's these small things that penetrate your psyche and make you relate at a deeper level.

With rising Covid-19 cases and deaths in India, the government should have thought of the repercussions before opening liquor shops.

It's foolish and such a shame that we attack those working for everyone's safety.

I am very romantic inside.

Whenever I read a script or sign a film, I don't see whether he is a bad guy or a good guy. I see how much the character is contributing to the story? How much is the importance of the character in taking the story forward? And what new I would be able to learn and what new I would be able to try in that?

I have to do good roles.

I was lucky to be a student of FTII, Pune.

I have no complaints from my characters, be it in 'Commando' or 'Gangs of Wasseypur' everyone on those films was grey.

People who are highly motivated, when it comes to dogs, they will go to any extent. Sometimes I feel that dogs play a more important role in their lives, more than other humans do.

In someone's life, dogs can be very important which in turn changes everyone else's lives.

When you expect something, there's also a certain fear about whether or not that expectation will be fulfilled.

Every 10-15 years, society changes. The thinking of a 10-year-old kid changes when he turns 20. Such changes can be seen in every aspect of life. People's preferences also change with time.

It feels good to get new opportunities.

I don't mind getting typecast as long as it is not overpowering me as an actor.

Audience want to watch a good performance at the end of the day.

Being born in a small town, you have got many advantages. You get to experience so many things in life.

I weighed 100 kg while shooting 'Paatal Lok.' I am 6 feet and therefore it might not appear that I weigh so much.

You get more time to see the growth of a character in a series, there's no scope for that in films.

I love dancing and can very well manage Bollywood dancing.

I've grown up with bhangra and Haryanvi folk dances.

My father would tell me my defects but never praise me to my face. The good things about me he would only tell others when I wasn't around.

In my village, Kharkara, 20 km from Rohtak, I would work in our fields of sugarcane, wheat and paddy while dreaming of the day I would join the army, and receive a hero's welcome every time I came home on leave. In our part of the world, a soldier is a star.