Sixteen-year-old Rudhraksh Jaiswal plays one of the two central roles — matching Chris Hemsworth beat for beat — in Extraction that’s now streaming on Netflix. The Sam Hargrave-directed action caper that’s produced by Avengers men Joe and Anthony Russo, has Rudhraksh — who has acted in a few Hindi TV shows before his big Holly break came calling — thick in the middle of all the action as Ovi Mahajan, the kidnapped son of an Indian crime lord that Hemsworth’s mercenary called Tyler Rake is entrusted with rescuing. The Telegraph chatted with Rudhraksh on his big Holly film and bonding with Hemsworth.
What are the emotions like before your big Hollywood release?
I am excited and also very nervous to know what the response will be like from the audience. It’s been my childhood dream to work with such big names like the Russo brothers and Sam Hargrave and, of course, I have grown up watching Chris Hemsworth’s films. I love the characters he plays, especially Thor (in the Marvel films).
What was that moment like when you were told that you had landed one of the two central roles in a film as big as Extraction?
I feel very blessed to have been a part of a large-scale film like Extraction. I was auditioned for this by (casting director) Tess Joseph... I went through five or six rounds of auditions and it was very, very tough. When she told me that the director of the film is Sam Hargrave, I was overwhelmed because he’s been the action director for such huge films like Avengers: Endgame, Avengers: Infinity War and Captain America: Civil War. He personally auditioned me for some of the film’s tough sequences. When he told me I would be working with Chris Hemsworth, I felt that my dream of so many years was turning into reality. I cannot forget that moment. Chris Hemsworth is my idol and my screen inspiration. My heart just skipped a beat. I rushed to my mom outside and told her that I had got the part and that Chris Hemsworth was going to be working on the project. And her reaction was, ‘Woh kaun hai?’ And I was like, ‘Mama, aap Chris Hemsworth ko nahin jaante?!’ I told her that he’s Thor and then she realised how big he was. I have always been a huge fan of Chris sir.
The first time I met him on set was when I was doing my make-up checks and Chris sir just walked in. There’s so much charisma about him... a kind of aura. I always knew that with him around, I wanted to work more diligently... I didn’t want to make any mistakes. I was starstruck... he’s tall, he’s super fit and the first thing that my eyes were drawn to were his muscles, quite obviously! (Laughs) He’s so handsome!
Overall, this has been a major learning experience for me. I got to take back a lot. The majority of my scenes were with Chris sir and he taught me a lot when it came to dialogue delivery, voice modulation, diction... and he also helped me during the action sequences. He guided me through the journey, gave me tips and techniques and he enhanced my skills and my performance. We have a kind of father and son bond in the film that grows stronger with every scene that we had together.
It’s interesting that you spoke about the father-son bond because despite being a full-on action film, Extraction has its emotional moments, courtesy the scenes that you share with Chris Hemsworth. Did you bond off set too to build on this organic chemistry?
Yes, of course. This started even before we started shooting for the film. We reached Ahmedabad (where a large portion of Extraction was filmed) after our make-up checks and costume trials and I messaged Sam sir asking if he could have some readings with Chris sir, Sam sir and me. I feel those readings helped me understand the intricacies and the emotionally challenging aspects of my character. We spoke to each other a lot, about our characters as well as our personal lives. That made our bond stronger.
Even during the shoot, we would get together after the day’s filming was done. It was Diwali at that time and I went to Chris sir’s room and told him about Diwali. We ate a lot of Indian food and even went down to burst crackers. In Bangkok, we played football together, went to the gym, went swimming together... it was great.
It’s early days for you, but how are you looking at Extraction in terms of furthering your career as an actor?
Through this film, I feel we have the opportunity of representing India. This is a significant achievement for Indian cinema and Indian artistes that this film, which is made on a storyline based here, will be watched globally. This will go a long way in showcasing the versatility of Indian artistes. Netflix is huge in India and I feel grateful to be part of a team that has put their hearts and souls into making this movie.