Sugar, spice, and everything nice

Siddhant Issar; (right) Tom Ellis in Lucifer

Despite his pedigree, Siddhant Issar, the son of veteran actor Puneet Issar, has not found the road to fame easy. The actor claims he didn't want it any other way. He began his career as a writer, then moved on to theatre and directed short films before making his television debut with Mahima Mata Vaishno Devi (2023) and Shiv Shakti - Tap Tyaag Taandav (2023). After two mythological shows, Siddhant now plays the protagonist, Devil Maalik, in the fantasy show, Shaitani Rasmein. He claims that the character is similar to Tom Ellis's Lucifer Morningstar in the hit show Lucifer. "This is my first supernatural fantasy show. He is the Indianised version of Lucifer. He is one of the crown princes of Hell and hopes to rule the world. My character is a mix of sugar, spice, and everything nice and bad. He represents the seven deadly sins. It is also similar to Dracula's story where he has been living through the ages and is trying to claim his girl after her rebirth; that's the other angle to the show. It's a devil's love story," says the actor.

Puneet Issar

Siddhant, 29, finds the television industry like "a factory" because of the long working hours. He claims that while the norm is to work 12-hour shifts, sometimes one has to shoot for 18 hours or more to meet deadlines. "Working hours on TV are consuming but satisfying. After 12 hours a day, you get into the skin of the character. That is the biggest advantage of TV. It's a medium of close-ups; you have to be quick, excel, and deliver. A [supernatural] movie is made on a budget of crores; you cannot compare the graphics in movies to those on TV. It's easy to make one film of two hours, but keeping the audience engaged for hundreds of episodes [is only possible] because the writing is gripping and brilliant," asserts the actor.

As Puneet's son, he naturally faces comparisons with his father's legacy from both the industry and audiences. However, Siddhant only compares himself to his father in terms of hard work. "He has gone through a lot more struggle than I have. That made him strong and tough at an early age. I have a cushioned background. I am trying [to ape] his resilience. Your parents either serve as great inspirations or admonishments. He is a great example for me for the kind of hard work I want to do. While I have his eyes, voice, and physicality, we are very different. The kind of roles he got when he was my age is not something I can get, and he would not get the roles I am getting because he looked different," explains Siddhant, adding that while his parents are not avid TV viewers, they have "sat through his performance in one episode" and liked it.