Good things come to those who wait, believes "Gullak" star Vaibhav Raj Gupta, who describes his journey from Uttar Pradesh's Sitapur town to the city of dreams as rewarding yet eventful.

After appearing in more than half a dozen short films, Gupta made his debut in Bollywood with a supporting role in the Sonakshi Sinha-starrer “Noor” (2017). He later appeared in a small role in Prime Video show “Inside Edge”. He also acted in web series "Good Bad Girl" and "Mai".

But it was "Gullak" that made him a household name as Annu Bhaiya, the resourceful elder son of the Mishra family at the centre of the popular series.

Gupta, who is awaiting the premiere of “Gullak” season four, says it has taken him many years to reach a point where he can pick the roles he wants to.

"It took me many, many years to reach here. Mumbai has taught me patience. I love this art form and I’m not going anywhere from here. I’m not in a hurry for something, I want to live every moment. I enjoy my life, I love it. I’m happy,” he told PTI in an interview.

"Gullak", a microcosm of the small-town lower middle class life in India, revolves around the Mishra family and their everyday adventures full of existential issues and nosy neighbours. It also stars Jameel Khan, Geetanjali Kulkarni, Harsh Mayar and Sunita Rajwar.

Now that he has found his spot in the sun, Gupta said he believes actors who are still struggling to find their footing should be treated fairly and seniors should have an "empathetic" attitude towards them.

“It is my responsibility to ensure that when I reach the top, I should not let this happen to others. There’s a poem by Vinod Kumar Shukla that talks about 'Hatasha' (frustration) and how empathy and being there for each other helps,” Gupta said.

“I believe it is the responsibility of us as artists that we should make our co-actors who have a small role feel comfortable. They should be able to talk to you about their life when vulnerable. On the sets of ‘Gullak’, we have sat with all the artists, we made sure they are part of the team,” he said.

Gupta said the reception to "Gullak", which premiered in 2019 and climbed the popularity chart during the pandemic, is overwhelming and he continues to receive "lengthy and beautiful messages" from fans.

"In the third season, we've shown that the father sustains a heart attack. I got emotional responses from people sharing their own stories. I was shooting in Goa and every day, I would get 50 messages but read each one to know how people were connecting to the story," he said.

Speaking on how the series captures the everyday existence of the common Indian man, Gupta said the series works because it's truly a reflection of India where many families, including his, still lead modest lives. The actor said he is reminded of this every time his parents come to visit him in Mumbai. His mother would set the house in order, arrange the clothes without even telling him.

"My parents usually come by flight but this time they decided to take the new train from Sitapur to Mumbai... I went to Kurla to pick them up and they had brought eight bags with them! They looked happy and didn’t seem tired. When I asked what was in those bags, they said, ‘There’s ghee, pickle, puris, sweets and other things," he recalled.

Asked how his character's catchphrase "Aapko Nahi Pata? (Don't you know?)" came to be, Gupta said it was actually a tough one to crack.

"We worked a lot on the style, tempo and delivery. It helped me make the character my own. I come from a small town, so I have seen these people around many times," he said, crediting writer Nikhil Vijay (from season one) for coming up with it.

Created by TVF, the fourth season of “Gullak” is directed by Shreyansh Pandey from a script written by Durgesh Singh. It will stream on SonyLIV from June 7.

Next up for Gupta is Yash Raj Entertainment's series "Mandala Murders" on Netflix.

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