Vikrant Massey recalls working 16-hour days, balancing two jobs at 16: ‘I survived on Parle-G and water, couldn’t even get tea’

“I’ve been very fortunate as the audiences have been so generous, even after 21 years of professional work. I started off with TV and did nearly a decade of television before acting in cinema. The love and support have only grown. And I say this with all humility because I’m 38 and audiences are still out there supporting me,” he said in an interview to Republic.

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The actor said that he faced the camera for the first time when he was 16 and the reason was purely monetary. “I was 16 when I faced the camera for the first time; I still remember the date, it was December 19, 2024. Prior to that, I was working as a barista. I did that job because I had to support my own education. I am not going to get into that sob story or my struggle. I used to also work as an assistant instructor in Shiamak Davar’s troupe and at that restaurant in Mumbai,” Vikrant recalled.

Recalling those days, the actor said he took inspiration from his own struggles for his 12th Fail character. “I was just 16 when I was changing four local trains everyday, working 16-hour days and often living off only Parle-G and water to survive. No one does it of their own accord, definitely not a young boy. I did because I had to,” Vikrant said.

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However, the actor recalled that his first show never saw the light of the day despite him giving him over 8 months of his life. “I was offered my first TV stint by a lady named Deepthi Kalwani at the restaurant while I was working. I think she liked my face. I was young and I had stars in my eyes. She offered me my first TV show then — to play the lead role. It was a fantasy show about a guy who goes invisible. I quit my stable job at Shiamak for this TV show. I used to conduct classes with some of the senior instructors in Shiamak Davar’s Institute for Performing Arts. The TV show offered me a lot of money and I decided to take up the offer as I needed the money.”

Vikrant said the show never materialised and along with that a major portion of the fee due to him was never given. “I was in college, first year junior college, which is basically Class 11 in Delhi. I shot for the TV show — seven episodes for 8-9 months — but it was never telecast. Something happened between the broadcasters and the producers and it was never shown. I was absolutely crushed. I was waiting for it and half the money due to me was unpaid. It eventually ended up becoming a pilot. I remember it was eventually telecast years later at 2 am on Star Plus as it was a Star property. There are so many things that happen which actors actually don’t know as they are the last people to come on board. The producer was kind enough. She knew that I had quit a stable job and also the financial situation that I was in. They offered me a job in the production office.”

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In an earlier interview to Faye D’Souza, Vikrant had recalled his family’s riches to rags journey when they had no choice but to leave their comfortable Juhu home and live in a godown for a while. “They used to live in Juhu and were neighbours to the Kapoor family. Theirs was a classical Hindi film story: they had a family feud, was thrown out of their own home, lived in godowns with a baby for almost a year and then finally move into Versova. They have seen massive ups and downs. Even though you are no longer a part of it, your parents make sure that you remember this through their experiences; the transience and fickle nature of life. Today I’m sitting in a position of privilege and am not feeling how I did 20 years ago when I started off. But can it not happen to me again tomorrow? Of course it can!”