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This is an archive article published on March 28, 2018

Amol Parashar on turning writer with It Happened In Hong Kong: Earlier all my writings used to be hidden and secret

Amol Parashar and Aahana Kumra have teamed up for the first time in Viu's web show It Happened In Hong Kong. Amol, who turns writer, has also done TVF digital series like Tripling and Bisht Please. He will be making his TV debut with Discovery Jeet's Gabru.

Amol Parashar photos Amol Parashar’s most loved character has been Chitvan from TVF Tripling.

Every time we sit down and talk about work, Amol Parashar impresses with his honesty and flamboyance. Starting off with TVF, the Tripling actor has become one of the top names in the world of digital content. In an exclusive chat with indianexpress.com, he spoke about his latest web offerings including Viu show It Happened In Hong Kong and how he turned a writer.

“The feedback is very warm and heartening. With It Happened In Hong Kong, we wanted to make simple stuff. We didn’t want to put things like sex or other random stuff just for the heck of it. But there was also a doubt that what if people call it boring. But people have really caught on to that. This means the audience is still willing to watch something honest and relatable as long as you make it well,” Amol said while sharing about the good response his new show It Happened In Hong Kong is receiving.

Amol, whose Chitvan in TVF Tripling became a youth sensation, shared how he ensures all his characters look and do things differently. “I try to do something new as I tend to get bored myself very quickly. Over here, there was nothing hard and fast that the guy would be like this. I could’ve played him like Chitvan too who doesn’t care and does a solo trip. When I came onboard, I made sure let’s make him a different person from what I’ve played so far,” he shared.

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Despite holding a mechanical engineering degree from IIT Delhi, Amol quit his regular job to pursue his creative dreams. His first brush with acting came when he debuted in Yash Raj Films’ Rocket Singh opposite Ranbir Kapoor. But it was his association with The Viral Fever (TVF) that changed the course of things for him. Being around for almost a decade, Amol has been part of numerous web shows. But, It Happened In Hong Kong was different. Apart from being its main lead, he has tried hands at writing for it too.

Amol Parashar, Sumeet Vyas and Maanvi Gagroo in TVF Tripling photos TVF Tripling starred Amol Parashar, Sumeet Vyas and Maanvi Gagroo.

“Writing is a very tiring and exhausting process. It takes all your mind and soul. That’s why I used to run away from it because then, I wouldn’t have been able to concentrate on other things. For Hong Kong, the script was already there. We just had to make the lines more spoken so that they don’t feel like dialogues. That was my contribution to this script. So there wasn’t much commitment and it was fun. Hence, I did it,” said Amol.

He further added, “I used to do small writings, picked one or two projects. That insect is there but I kept it aside. My first priority is acting. Also, people are always looking for writers and new stories. There will always be demand for more. And since people like us don’t write much, there is a freshness when we write. Earlier, all my writings used to be hidden and secret!”

Amol Parashar and Aahana Kumra in It Happened In Hong Kong stills Amol Parashar and Aahana Kumra are working for the first time in Viu web show It Happened In Hong Kong.

Speaking about his co-star Aahana Kumra, Amol shared, “Although we had never worked before, we had known each other for a while. So that was a major reason why both of us came onboard. We did a lot of improvisations and thankfully it worked out even beyond expectations. That can happen only when you are comfortable with your co-actor and you trust them.”

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Amol also has a 40-episode show Gabru for Discovery Jeet, where he plays Punjabi hip-hop king Gaurav Singh aka MC Money. This also marks his TV debut. Apart from this, he had shot for a film titled Aapkey Kamrey Mein Koi Rehta Hai co-starring Swara Bhaskar and Sumeet Vyas last year. While Gabru was pulled off the channel after few episodes, only to be relaunched with a bigger fanfare in the coming weeks, his film is still under production.

Amol Parashar in Discovery Jeet show Gabru photos Amol Parashar plays Gaurav Singh aka MC Money in Discovery Jeet show Gabru.

But all this hasn’t deterred Amol from doing his job. The actor claimed that the number of offers coming his way has only gone up and now he has to pick the best. Ask him about the limit of digital expansion in the country and he explained, “There’s a lot of activity happening in this world. The gravity is currently very high, people from all walks are getting attracted to it. Despite being a part of it, even I am unable to keep a track of what all is coming up. That budgetary constraint has also gone and there are more people to put in money.”

Also read | No hassle of censorship in making web series: Amol Parashar

“This is the only place that has variety. I don’t think TV has the kind of stories that we see on digital. There was a certain section which went missing from the TV audience after a point because they couldn’t connect to it. In digital there is something for everyone,” he signed off.

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