Gulshan Devaiah was initially reluctant to play a hired killer in Raj & DK’s Netflix series Guns & Gulaabs. But he changed his mind in the face of the director duo’s insistence, delivering a sterling performance as Chaar Cut Atmaram in the period crime thriller that continues to top the list of trending Netflix shows in India.

Basking in his recent success, Gulshan revealed to us why he was in two minds about playing the negative role, how he takes both criticism and praise in his stride, his favourite fashion decade and football team.

What attracted you to Chaar Cut Atmaram and Guns And Gulaabs?

Gulshan Devaiah: There’s always something attractive and interesting about Raj & DK’s work. They think and write their characters in a different way. They also differently explore absurdities in situations.

Earlier, I had worked with them for a short film called Glitch in the Amazon Prime Video anthology Unpaused. So I could not let go of the opportunity to work with them in a longer format.

What prompted you to accept a negative role — a contract killer from Bombay — something which you never did before?

Gulshan Devaiah: I had forgotten all about it until Raj Nidimoru reminded me during the promotions! I didn’t want to play bad guys and had almost turned the offer down. I wanted to do more diverse things but Raj insisted, saying, “That’s all great but I have a look at it once. We really think that this will be really great for you.”

So, I read the script and had some time to think about it. I realised that the character was wonderful and they gave me the freedom to interpret it. The series also gave me the chance to work with fellow actors like Rajkummar Rao with whom I would be working for the third time. I would lose out on so many things and it would be stupid. I may be many things but I’m not stupid when it comes to my career.

Then I thought that it would be a different matter if the thing doesn’t work out because of scheduling conflicts, but I will definitely regret it if I say no to this role. I’m very glad that I took the decision to play this role.

Chaar Cut Atmaram in Guns & Gulaabs has become a hit among the audience. How do you feel about it?

Gulshan Devaiah: Yes, people are responding in a really positive way — there are memes, tweets and video edits. Even Netflix has made a meme with me and Rajkummar Rao which I particularly liked. In Badhaai Do, I took a fake shot at him and in Guns And Gulaabs he actually shoots me [laughs]. I am enjoying the attention and the praise.

Apart from this frenzy, what is the best piece of feedback that you’ve received for your performance?

Gulshan Devaiah: This frenzy is the best piece of feedback. One can never really predict such things. It’s impossible to predict how people will respond to your work or a particular character or story. Cumulatively, I don’t think there’s only one thing that I’d like to pick out. But when your co-actors and people from the industry, especially your seniors, heap praise on you, it feels special.

I’m particularly enjoying this frenzy; it’s something I did not expect. In fact, I never expect anything. I do my work and forget it. Right now, I’m really enjoying this attention and I’m soaking in it for what it's worth.

What do you process better — criticism or appreciation?

Gulshan Devaiah: Either you block criticism out or you take what you need. That’s my strategy with criticism. After a point, with a certain amount of skill and knowledge, it’s possible for you to tell whether you did good or you did okay regardless of what people think.

Also people sometimes will have a point in their criticism. You have to take what’s necessary and you have to let go of the rest. A little bit of friction is important for growth. But the dangerous thing is when you start taking appreciation too seriously. When you let it seep into your skin and flow in your veins, it can make things really bad for you. I am more cautious about appreciation.

You have played layered characters throughout your career. How do you simplify a character in your mind so as to be able to play it?

Gulshan Devaiah: It differs from character to character, but I don’t consciously try to simplify a character. I try to accept it first the way a writer has written it. It all begins with whether you’re able to accept the reality of a character or not. Sometimes, I am not able to accept it. For example, a rapist. I would find it very difficult to personally submit to that character. I feel disturbed at the thought of playing a rapist, so I am not able to do so. I am talking about this because I was considered once for such a role. It was a great part but I didn’t think that I could commit to it. If I can’t accept the reality written in the script, then I would be insincere in my portrayal and that’s not good.

So, once I accept a character’s reality, I get creative ideas and then I start building from that and discussing my ideas with the directors and writers. I start simple, like, one good idea but I don’t simplify.

With Atmaram, suddenly a visual came to my mind — Anton Chigurh from No Country For Old Men (2007). I thought that it could be a good starting point. I went to meet Raj & DK in DK’s office; there’s a big poster of Anton Chigurh hanging on their wall. I was like “Oh, this is a sign”. So, I started building the character from there.

What role does your instinct play for you as an actor?

Gulshan Devaiah: Instinct and impulse are very important. If you have an instinct, then you can act on impulse. It’s really useful when you’re on the set. You can prepare and do everything, but once you’re on the set everything becomes very technical. But if you’re relaxed enough you can tap into your instincts and impulses as doing so sometimes can create magical moments captured on the camera.

I do value the fact that with ability and experience, your instinct becomes like an algorithm; it keeps updating itself. Sometimes going against your instinct in performance is also good because it would help you break boundaries and push you in a new direction. But the more relaxed you are, the more instinctive you would be.

Guns And Gulaabs brings back a lot of nostalgia. What do you feel the most nostalgic about the ’80s-’90s era?

Gulshan Devaiah: Everything! Right from the clothes I used to have, the houses I lived in, the weather in Bangalore, going to school, playing cricket with my friends, to watching one TV channel.

However, I don’t particularly think about it as being better. But those were the formative years. I am who I am because I went through all those experiences. I fondly remember spending a lot of time on my own, digging a pointless hole in the ground — that’s how a lot of us used to play in the ’80s-’90s. Then when your parents found out about the hole in the garden, you got into some trouble. It’s like those innocent things like the feeling when you read a Calvin & Hobbs comic strip or climb on a tree, sit there for hours and just see people pass by. Also, some TV programmes such as Malgudi Days or Chitrahar and a Hindi film on Sundays. These things are nostalgic for me.

I still remember not being able to eat the tutti-frutti ice-cream because, for some reason, my dad never liked tutti-frutti. So, every time we went out to eat ice-cream, it was always either vanilla or the pistachio flavour. He never let me eat tutti-frutti. Now if I find tutti-frutti at a buffet, I’ll eat it even if it tastes like shit. Because now nobody can stop me [laughs].

Since you’ve studied fashion and we’re talking about nostalgia, which decade had the best fashion trends according to you? And which of those trends do you think can be improvised and brought back today?

Gulshan Devaiah: I don’t know if there was one decade that was better than the other, particularly in India, because we were very influenced by whatever was happening around the world and then sometimes it came to us later. But I think perhaps we’re in the best of times right now. There’s a variety of influences, and there’s so much variety in the way people dress up and express themselves.

If you see, some of the biggest fashion houses have employed somebody like Virgil Abloh, Nigo, and Pharell Williams to design collections. These people didn’t particularly have formal training in fashion, but they became cultural icons for the way they saw fashion and expressed themselves through the clothes they made.

There are a variety of influences that you see now. For streetwear to influence high fashion was unheard of when I was in fashion, but it’s happening right now. So, perhaps we are in the best decade of fashion right now.

You have worked with different kinds of directors. Who is the filmmaker that you’d like to work with?

Gulshan Devaiah: Sriram Raghavan. I think he’s the only director that I have told, “Sir, please write something for me.” No, no, I didn’t say that. I said something like, “I’ll be waiting till you give me a call.” He must have thought, “What a weirdo!” But I don’t mind that. I have always enjoyed his films and sometimes fantasise about being in his films.

And a filmmaker that you’d like to share the screen space with?

Gulshan Devaiah: Ram Gopal Varma! Because he refused the last time [laughs]. I want my revenge for refusing. For Mard Ko Dard Nahin Hota, Vasan Bala (director) had approached RGV to play my father’s part but he refused. But maybe in the future, we can convince him – just for kicks yaar! He contributed greatly to the change in narrative in Hindi cinema. There are so many people who owe their careers and influences to him. A.R. Rahman’s Hindi filmography started with RGV – Rangeela. RGV is a very important person. He formed so many things in the mid and late 90s. That’s why I think it would be sort of coming of age for my career to have one scene in which he is my co-actor [chuckles].

The football season has started across the world. Since you’re an Arsenal supporter, what do you think are their chances of winning the English Premier League this season?

Gulshan Devaiah: This season is going to be very competitive. Because there are a lot of tough games. Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion are also doing great. I don’t know how much consistency one can expect from Brighton, but Manchester United and Liverpool seem to be getting their act together. Manchester City are the frontrunners. It’s not going to be easy to call.

I think this season will go down to the wire. I would love for Arsenal to win the league. But I wouldn’t mind if there’s a surprise like Newcastle United — if they manage to beat somebody with one point or one goal difference. That would be really something too.