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Fawad Khan: ‘I am often told, theek dikhta hai, itna kya hai?’
Updated On: 19 July, 2024 07:05 AM IST | Mumbai | Mohar Basu
Returning to Indian screens with Barzakh, Pakistani actor Fawad says he chose the experimental series to be known as an artiste over a star or heartthrob
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The last time we saw Fawad Khan on Indian screens was eight years ago, in the love story, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016). It may be difficult to align that memory of him with his recent turn in Barzakh. In director Asim Abbasi’s series that explores the supernatural and magic realism, we see so little of the star and so much of the actor in Khan, as he plays a single father. When we sit across from him on a Zoom call, that’s our first question: What made him choose Barzakh, which is an unusual subject for a star? "It`s easier for me. I stay away from the hullabaloo of social media. I have some sort of blinders on. I am not immune to the noise around me. When I started off my career, I was drawn to the glitz and glamour. I am not from a trained background as an actor. The first thing that attracts you is the bling. Very early in my career, even before I came to India, I started falling in love with the craft. I started working towards my process, studying to improve my richness of craft. I was looking for characters and stories that had something to tell. As an artist, I don`t think I wish to give a moral lesson or teach ideas of morality. But at the same time, I want to give them characters that come from amidst them, do things that do or do not relate to, their conflicts and resolutions. It became easier for me eventually to move towards being an artist over a star. Stardom is collateral; but I don`t think of myself as a big star at all."
One of Pakistan`s most popular actors globally, Fawad tells us that saying yes to Abbasi was far from a difficult decision. He instantly was in love with `the wildness of the written word`. "It was love at first sight. He is a very gifted writer-director. The script is the holy grail. When I take a project to anyone, I expect them to read the story. I shouldn`t have to pitch it; the story should speak to them and pitch itself. Asim is amazing. You`ll assume someone who writes heavy stuff isn`t fun to hang with. He is crazy but equally sorted. It`s his sensitivity that`s beautiful. We fostered a friendship that`s carried on. We took out time to do table readings. We would do physical rehearsals. The good part about these readings was that we know what we are doing before we get to the set. They were extensive and often we could go off-subject and talk about other things in our hearts. Asim allowed us to get into an intimate headspace of the character and how they fed off one another. I was able to dissect the mental anatomy of Sheryaar and where he was coming from and where he could go."
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