Tanuj Virwani: My mother is worried about my dark roles

He is a star son but Tanuj Virwani takes pride in having paved his own way in the big bad world of showbiz The actor is enjoying the reactions to two backtoback projects in The Tattoo Murders that sees him as a ruthless baddie and Murder Meri Jaan In a candid chat with midday Virwani talks about playing the antagonist for the first time in the Tattoo Murders and his desire to attempt comedy after a spate of serious rolesEdited excerpts from the interviewWhy was the seriesrsquo name changed from KamathipuraSome sections of the society had a problem with the title They thought we were depicting Kamathipura and the sex workers in a negative light which is not true To avoid controversies DisneyHotstar decided to change the title to The Tattoo Murders However the name is only changed in India it dropped in other countries as KamathipuraStill from Murder Meri JaanIs it risky to take up the role of an antagonist when yoursquove yet to establish yourself as a leading manDigital entertainment gives you freedom to take such risks Luckily my lineup of projects includes herocentric and massy projects so I didnrsquot mind dabbling in this I often attempt different characters and see how people respond to them When you are fronting a project there is a lot more responsibility on you In The Tattoo Murders the principal character is played by Meera Chopra The creative freedom due to lack of pressure allowed me to give a more gutsy performance Unlike in Inside Edge there is a box and I must operate within itWhat drew you to this projectAfter wrapping up Code M I was in the midst of Inside Edge 3 and was to follow it up with Cartel With all these shows the onus of their success lay on me So I wanted to do something different I liked the narration of The Tattoo Murders and where my character eventually ends up I look up to George Clooney and Brad Pitt mdash they are popular because they are leading actors as well as the worldrsquos best character actors They will shine bright no matter whether they are in an ensemble drama or solo project Thatrsquos the kind of balance I want in my careerTanuj Virwani with mother Rati AgnihotriTell us about your other series Murder Meri JaanItrsquos a detective drama with a mix of romcom I essay the role of a serious pokerfaced ACP mdash almost like Abhishek Bachchan from Dhoom mdash who is chasing a con girl who has lured over 19 men into a fake marriage and ran away with their money I fall in love with her without realising that she is the culprit Irsquove been chasing It was shot over a starttofinish schedule in BhopalAre you getting typecast with dark serious rolesMurder Meri Jaan is lighter in tone compared to the other projects I am doing I see it as my holiday project where I can have fun with my character I want to try an outandout comedy because I enjoy the genre and have never got the chance to attempt it I hope I get more such opportunities in the future My mother Rati Agnihotri is concerned about my dark roles She complains lsquoPeople are dying or killing or using drugs in every series We never did all thisrsquo I keep telling her that I am the product of the times we live inAlso Read Rati Agnihotris son Tanuj recounts fire departments rescue operation