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EXCLUSIVE: Sharad Kelkar on Laxmii, playing a transgender onscreen, Akshay Kumar and adulation
Speaking about Laxmii with Pinkvilla, Sharad Kelkar revealed why he chose to play the role, which many perhaps refused. He also opened up on the appreciation received and much more.
Sharad Kelkar stunned everyone with his performance as Laxmi in Laxmii, also starring Akshay Kumar and Kiara Advani. The film was released digitally on November 9. The actor has been receiving praises for his heroic entry for convincingly playing the spirit of Laxmii. Speaking about it with Pinkvilla, Sharad revealed why he chose to play the role, which many perhaps refused. He also opened up on the appreciation received and much more. Over to him.
How happy are you with the reception to your character in particular? The best compliment received?
It is a mixed review I think. It is a big film, a lot of effort has gone into it. The kind of response the film is getting and Akshay sir is getting, I am very happy with it. The first compliment that I got, it was from my wife, she is my partner, my guru, she taught me the basic of acting and she told me that I was looking fantastic and she is excited to see what I did. She watched the film and was crying and hugged me saying she is proud of me. I think that was it. That for me was the biggest compliment. Apart from that, it is nice when people recognise your efforts and appreciate you and are surprised when they see you do the unexpected. It gives me more confidence too. 
We know that many refused the offer. What made you say yes?
I was ready in the first go when they offered me the role. As I said, I want to experiment with roles a d do different characters. I have seen Kanchana multiple times, so when they approached me for the role, I knew what it was and I said yes in the first go. As an actor, if you want to grow, you want to try different things. if you are scared of something you can’t grow.
But did you have any apprehensions per se?
It’s been happening with me for the longest time. When I did Bairi Piya on TV, a lot of actors from my fraternity and friends told me why am I doing it? You should do a lead role, why this? but then I got an award for that show. Even with Bhoomi, people asked me why are you doing this? I told them because I want to learn. I am very adamant in terms of choosing that way, if I want to do something, I will do it, when it comes to projects and professionally. But when it comes to this film, in particular, no one expressed apprehensions, in fact, they were happy.
Given that role, though short, was diverse and had varied emotions, what was the most challenging thing to portray?
Everything was challenging. To get the body language, Raghav Sir is a master, he guided me. Then I saw some footages of Akshay Sir, and Raghav Sir was helped. I saw a lot of documentaries to learn their body language and did my homework. The speech scene, I had no reference of, for me to do that vulnerable scene was slightly difficult. Before the scene, I was chatting with the transgenders on sets and listening to their stories. It was so painful to hear what they have been through, ill-treatment from family and society. I think that the pain inside me helped me portray that scene well. Interacting with them, learning their back story, and the pain behind their smile and hardship, I got goosebumps and was teary-eyed. We talk about our pain but it is nothing in front of them.
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