MUMBAI: Actor Aamir Ali said that he found it difficult to transition from television to streaming because he was a ‘star’, unlike other popular television actors such as Vikrant Massey who broke into Bollywood after working in television.
Unlike Vikrant, who first established himself on TV with a supporting role in Balika Vadhu, Aamir began his career as a film actor, and later moved to television because he ran out of money.
In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, Aamir said that directors of streaming shows and films wouldn’t consider him for roles, which he attributed to his success on the small screen doing lead roles in as many as eight shows. “The OTT offers I got were very TV-based,” he said, adding that he did his due diligence and reached out to several filmmakers that he was friendly with. “I made them meet my mother and sister, called them over for dinners, but they didn’t offer me roles. And the response was, ‘We don’t think you fit this character’. They were only seeing me as a TV star.”
He continued, “They couldn’t imagine me doing anything else. I’m too hero for them. The OTT offers were very TV-plus-plus. If that was the case, why not keep doing TV? In 11 years, I did eight shows as the main lead. I’ve done everything, besides horror. I’ve done it all. The issue, I realised, was that I’m not a TV actor; I’m a TV star. People who’ve done TV and then done OTT and films, like Mrunal or Vikrant, they were not TV stars. They’d done one or two serials here and there, in supporting roles, and they utilised all the valuable lessons they learned on TV… But I’d become a star, so it was difficult for me to get roles.” Aamir was eventually cast in the ZEE5 series Black Widows, and Naxalbari. More recently, he appeared in the Disney+ Hotstar shows Lootere, and The Trial.
In an interview, Vikrant said that he took a huge gamble by giving up a steady paycheque on television. He said in an interview with Samdish Bhatia, “My parents were in shock when I told them I am going to restart over in films. I was making a lot of money. At the age of 24, I was earning Rs 35 lakh per month, especially for someone who comes from a middle-class background. I quit TV at the time when I had a Rs 35 lakh per month contract in my hand. I decided to do good work and find peace. My savings got exhausted in a year and then my wife Sheetal (his girlfriend at the time) used to give me pocket money for auditions.”
Also read -Excited about entertainment's new phase: Actor Aamir Ali
In 2023, after a decade of working in movies, Vikrant delivered his first theatrical hit as a lead actor. He starred in Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s 12th Fail, which earned glowing reviews and grossed nearly Rs 70 crore worldwide.
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Credits - The Indian Express
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