I learnt that there were many others like me: Sunil Grover opens up about his struggle

Comedian Sunil Grover became household with his character of Gutthi on The Kapil Sharma Show. He continued to charm the audience with his yet another female character Rinku Bhabhi and Dr. Mashoor Gulati. Not just television, but Sunil has also been a prominent face in movies as well. While everyone talks about his success and magical journey, Sunil has now opened up about his struggles that he faced during his initial days in the industry.

Like every aspiring actor, Sunil came to the city of dreams, Mumbai, to try his luck and make a name for himself. He soon realised that there were several others here who were popular in their home towns but struggled to make a mark in Mumbai. But fortunately, luck was on Sunil's side. He started getting work and soon regained his strength slowly and steadily.

"The important thing is to learn from each experience. I have seen my father struggle every day to pursue his dreams and that has taught me to never give up on mine. When I was struggling in the industry, I learnt that there were many others like me, who were 'superstars' of their town - and 'strugglers' here (in Mumbai). But I kept my calm and believed in myself, I tried to reach out to people in the industry for work. Soon I started getting work and realised how fortunate I was and regained my strength bit by bit," Sunil Grover told IANS in an interview.

Sunil Grover is one actor who has made successful transition between TV and films. He has worked in films recent being Baaghi and Bharat. When he was asked if films offer more opportunities than television as an actor, the comedian replied, "All my roles in films or comedy shows, have been different. Yes of course, this ('Baaghi') was a challenging role for me as I played the lead actress' father, a character that was years older than my real age. I streaked my hair grey and picked up a Punjabi accent for the part."

He further explained how he is happy doing well written characters irrespective of any platform. "The objective for television, theatre or radio, is the same - to entertain. Television is a medium where you have to work on your character on an everyday basis and films is medium where when you get to work, you have to work before it starts," Sunil said.

Elaborating further, Elaborating further, Sunil said: "In television, character grows with time because it's a long-running affair most of the time but in films, the character's story has a beginning, middle and an end and then after some time a new journey starts with a new character."

"For me, both the mediums have their own charm. Working on films and television, both give opportunities to explore myself as an actor and enjoy the journey," he added.

Gutthi remains Sunil's favourite character

He has played many comic characters but Gutthi remains a favourite of many.

"According to me, the audience connects with this character the most because it is an amalgamation of various characters that you come across in your day-to-day life. Guthi is a whole package, a blockbuster entertainer," he said.

He has donned the sari or a suit to play other women characters too. When he was first asked to play a woman character, was he a bit hesitant?

"I have been someone who has always been good at mimicry, acting and making people laugh. While playing a character, I don't think of the gender. Till the time I can make people laugh without offending anyone, I am not hesitant. I only take 10 minutes to get dressed for a male character and 20 minutes in total to be ready as Gutthi. Also, I like it when people call out my character name as it is very overwhelming that they are aware of the characters I play," said Sunil.

(With IANS Inputs)