Vikrant Massey is looking forward to many more collaborations with Vidhu Vinod Chopra as the actor says the acclaimed filmmaker has given him a "restart moment" in his career with "12th Fail".
The film, based on Anurag Pathak’s bestselling novel about the journey of IPS officer Manoj Kumar Sharma and IRS officer Shraddha Joshi, released in October and has become a silver jubilee hit, completing 25 weeks in the theatres. It has reportedly earned over Rs 70 crore at the box office.
"There's a lot more to do and many stories that I want to tell. There are so many more movies that Vinod sir and I want to make together. So it's just the beginning," Massey told PTI in an interview.
"I'm really glad that I got this opportunity to play Manoj. If I have to thank someone besides the audience, then it has to be Vinod sir. He really entrusted me with this role. He's given me my own restart moment," the actor added.
Mounted on a reported budget of Rs 20 crore, “12th Fail” and its success has come as a surprise to trade analysts, especially at a time when spectacle cinema seems to be the flavour of the season.
The movie's "unprecedented" run in the theatres has definitely surprised the film's team, said Massey, who recently won his first Filmfare award for best actor (critics).
"These are unprecedented and unplanned things. We always knew we had a good film in our hands. But we really didn't know that the film would do the numbers it did, the number of people it reached out to or even achieve a silver jubilee feat, which is so seldom now." According to Massey, the film industry has been very kind and generous to him but what has changed post "12th Fail" is the greater recognition from the people.
“The only thing that has changed is the number of people knowing me now, their reception towards me has been the same. Even when I was doing TV, people respected me for the work I did and they continue to do that. The hugs and pats are warmer, but it remains the same.
"I started off in Hindi movies as a hero’s friend, and then I slowly started doing meatier parts. And here I am celebrating the silver jubilee of '12th Fail'. So, my journey has been very gratifying and I cannot complain." Massey, who is also known for his critically acclaimed performance in films such as “Dil Dhadakne Do”, “Haseen Dilruba”, “Death in the Gunj” and “Chhapaak”, said the theatrical success has opened many doors for him and it will be “foolish” to change his approach after one success.
"I'm open to everything. My approach remains the same. I would be foolish to go out there because of one film success wanting to completely change something that I've been following for 20 years. I think that would be the beginning of the end, so I would rather not do that,” said Massey.
The actor will be next seen in "Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba" opposite Taapsee Pannu. The movie is a sequel to his 2021 hit "Haseen Dilruba".
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