When I discovered the real 'Omi' in me!

A page from a personal diary of Ravi Dubey Like every actor who desires to be ‘noticed’ and do a challenging role, I too had the same wish after I did Ranbir-Rano. So I took up Omi’s character in Karol Bagh. The character was of not an abnormal guy, but a relatively dim guy who understands things a little late. His condition is courtesy the wrong medication given to him by his own brother. I thought I understood the character as I had worked hard to do justice to it until I met a boy going through the same thing. It happened a few months after my character went on air. I was at a mall with my co-actors. Suddenly, a middle-aged couple recognized me and started appreciating my role. Soon, they were sharing something about their son that had me in tears. They have a 19-year-old son, Arjun, who’s suffering from autism. We saw him with a different body-language, similar to my role in the show. Seeing him, I felt that I don’t know and understand anything about my character. This disorder cannot be cured. It is a life-long issue. I was trying to gauge what he was feeling. For the first time I could actually relate myself with the young boy, understanding the sensitiveness of the disorder. After the chat with his parents, my whole perception towards my role changed drastically. It was then I felt I had met the real Omi. And since that day I loved Omi, for his not so normal but optimistic way of accepting things about his life. I wish everyone looks at Omi too a little more sensitively.