Saurabh Sachdeva feels proud to see Triptii Dimri`s growth post Laila Majnu

When Saurabh Sachdeva first heard director Shazia Iqbal narrate Dhadak 2, he had tears in his eyes. That reaction was enough to convince her he was invested — and ready to play Shankar — the quietly menacing casteist killer in the Siddhant Chaturvedi and Triptii Dimri-starrer.

Produced by Dharma Productions, Zee Studios, and Cloud 9 Pictures, the film is an official adaptation of Mari Selvaraj’s 2018 anti-caste Tamil drama, Periyerum Perumal. While Sachdeva had the source material to draw inspiration, he brought his interpretation as well. “I would discuss [the character’s] lifestyle and [equation] with his wife and daughter with the team. While his actions are violent and brutal, I thought I didn’t need to make the character aggressive. He should be more timid and busy with life otherwise. He won’t be in-your-face with his violence, like threatening or scaring someone. Shazia and I were aligned on the fact that he would be passive, until he acts. Then, he would be very aggressive,” he says.

Saurabh Sachdeva in ‘Dhadak 2’. Pics/AFP, Instagram

Sachdeva is elated with the response to the movie, calling it an important film to have come out of Bollywood that he would have celebrated it even if he wasn’t part of it. “Even if I wasn’t in the film, I would have been happy. I’m getting calls from directors and producers because they are genuinely impressed,” he shares. He points out that caste-based discrimination is far from limited to small towns. “I was discussing with my family about big buildings having service lifts. [It shows] that we still have [caste-based discrimination] in big societies. It is not just happening in small towns. But we are so oblivious and don’t want to see these things.”

The actor is equally proud of his student Dimri, whom he met before her debut in Laila Majnu (2017). “I love how people are liking her work. She is going to show more of her beautiful colours in her upcoming projects. I remember how introverted she was when I met her. She used to work with a wall [around her]. But she was very vulnerable and receptive. I have seen her growth, which is magical. I believe it’s her vulnerability that makes her look even more beautiful,” he says, adding that it warms his heart that Dimri hasn’t let success go to her head.