Everybody Loves Sumit

Actor Namit Das.

Among the memorable events for Namit Das while shooting Sumit Sambhal Lega, the Hindi adaptation of the hit American sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, was that he got married. The actor suddenly found himself in a “Raymond-like situation” — with parents who lived two buildings away and a wife who confessed she could not cook. “I had a Birdman moment, where I was unable to separate the real from the reel,” says Das, who plays the main protagonist in the Star Plus show. Bringing alive Raymond — a laid-back character for whom every situation is comical and every household chore avoidable — through Sumit counts as a big challenge for Das, who made his mark in films such as Wake up Sid, Ghanchakkar and Ankhon Dekhi.

“He is a smart alec and that is what makes him endearing,” says Das about Raymond. While the original is set in the ’90s, the Indian version, directed by Devan Bhojani, shows how “Raymond will be in 2015 India”. Das, adding that he had little idea about the show when he auditioned for the role, enabling him to present it with a fresh treatment. “The original writer of the series, Steve Skrovan, oversaw the creative process of Sumit Sambhal Lega and ensured that it maintained the ethos of Everybody Loves Raymond,” says the actor.