Myriad shades

Today,however,Dobriyal—one from the latest crop of talent—is readying for his first solo release,Bela Negi’s Daayen Ya Baayen,this weekend. While most will celebrate such a moment,the 34-year-old is rather melancholic. “It’s a small film and absolutely no publicity plan was in place until a few days ago. A simple story,it needs a vehicle to push through the star-studded line-up,” he says with a furrowed brow.

The actor,dressed in a simple white shirt and denims,looks at the overcast sky as we walk alongside the beach in Versova. The crashing waves drown out his soft voice as Dobriyal talks about his character Ramesh Majila in his forthcoming film. “I play a village school teacher who has won a car in a lucky draw. The vehicle makes Ramesh the centre of the children’s attention and the elder’s envy. But when the car gets stolen,he sets out in search of his car and his dignity.”

Aware,and hence apprehensive of the responsibility of carrying an entire film on his own shoulders,it was the simplicity of this story that charmed Dobriyal into signing the film. The film is shot in the Garwhal region to which he belongs. The 15-member crew shot in five small,picturesque towns,such as Ranikhet,and hired local artistes everywhere. “The problems were thus unique. One day,we were all set to shoot with the old woman who plays a grandmother in the film when we found out that her cow was lost in the jungle. She had set out in search of it since that is her priority over any film shoot. We learnt that irrespective of where you come from,you have to succumb to the pace of nature.”

During a casual conversation one realises that it is the actor’s ability to emote to the smaller,finer situations that make him a versatile actor. Dobriyal,who first made a mark as an actor in Omkara as Rajju Tiwari,reinforced it with remarkable performances in Delhi-6 and Gulaal. His upcoming characters are equally versatile. In Tanu Weds Manu,he plays Madhavan’s spirited brother,followed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra Productions’ Teen The Bhai where he shares screen space with Om Puri and Shreyas Talpade. “One needs patience to chart their own career in this industry,” he asserts.

Despite the positivity,Dobriyal smiles as he accepts that there are moments when the star system disillusions him. “At such moments,I remove myself from the situation and come take a walk by the seaside,” he says as he looks into the distant sea. “When you’re a star,the audience wants to see you in the same avatar over and over again. But the charm of being a character actor is that you need not repeat yourself ever.”