Amol Parashar: ‘The comedy we make doesn’t make everyone laugh’

After the third edition of Tripling in 2022 Amol Parashar returned to the screen early this year with Sweet Dreams opposite Mithila Palkar He will soon follow it up with TVFrsquos Gram Chikitsalaya where he plays a doctor in a rural village While the series has connotations similar to the hit series Panchayat the actor swears that the story and treatment are distinct Parashar also has a comedy film Nausikhiye with Abhimanyu Dassani that has yet to find a platform but has got his parentsrsquo seal of approval In conversation with midday the actor discusses his upcoming projects why comedy is his favourite genre despite its challenges and how OTT is neglecting a section of viewersEdited excerpts from the interviewThe year 2025 seems busy for youThe last release I had was the third season of Tripling in 2022 Itrsquos not that I havenrsquot worked in between I have been shooting for several shows but the release dates are just converging this year I cannot decide when and where it will be released But I believe my patience has paid off As long as it all reaches people I have no issues waitingFrom left Akash Makhija Anandeshwar Dwivedi and Amol Parashar in Gram ChikitsalayaTell us about the TVF show Gram ChikitsalayaI am excited about this show I like doing characters that people havenrsquot seen me play before It is based in a small villagersquos primary health centre where an idealistic person wants to change the world and be a good doctor but the world doesnrsquot work on good intentions It has interesting characters and scenarios that depict village life Vaibhav Suman has written it under the guidance of showrunner Deepak Mishra of Panchayat fame Maamla Legal Hairsquos Rahul Pandey has directed itDoes the show have similarities with PanchayatIt seems similar to Panchayat because an outsider comes to a rural setup However all rural places in our country are different from each other The intentions and reasons differ from Abhishek Tripathi played by Jitendra Kumar because my character wants to be there The treatment and themes are different because the writer and director have a unique style and vision The idea is to tell more stories in a similar milieu but nobody wants to make the same thing It is set in a faroff village in Jharkhand so the dialect and conflicts are differentDid you master a new dialectMy character hails from the city so I didnrsquot have to learn the dialect but it is a different personality from who I am and how I have been onscreen before I was happy that this time I didnrsquot have to master a new dialect The series also explores how he tries to understand the language of the people he servesWith Nausikhiye are you set to do another comedyFor this film I had to work on my dialect It is an outandout comedy caper I remember laughing so much when the writers sent the script to me Writers Avinash Dwivedi and Chirag Garg who have also written the latest show Dupahiya on Prime Video have crafted something special I love the genre because it is difficult to execute but it has a charm and gives you the freedom to play with the character It sometimes allows reality to take a backseat The thing I miss about the comedies we make is that they donrsquot make everyone laugh Here the jokes genuinely made me laugh out loud The punchlines are fresh I laughed so much during the narration that it was a given I would do the film Itrsquos a nobrainer comedy We have already shot it and it is almost ready for releaseWhat was the feedback on itI have seen and loved it and so have my parents Sometimes my folks cannot watch everything that comes out on OTT Their complaint about the web is that the shows are mostly all about killing each other or screwing each other and there are too many expletives Thatrsquos the feedback I get from them However while watching Nausikhiye we were all laughingmdashmy parents my staffmdasheveryone That was a good signDo you feel OTT is able to keep up with peoplersquos expectationsIt is definitely in a better situation than it was 10 years ago I have been around for a long time laughs It has opened up avenues for writers directors and actors Having said that we expect perfection but because OTT platforms provide creative freedom content sometimes goes overboard I believe it is okay for anyone to create whatever they wish but I empathise with my parents There are so many shows but they donrsquot feel like they are made for them I do think we are missing out on a large part of the audience that is also seeking entertainment Once in a while you will find shows that break the mould but it is not easy to make and pitch it to platforms