Darsheel Safary, who made his debut as a child actor with Aamir Khan Having in Taare Zameen Par, is all grown up. Currently in his third year of college, Safary is pursuing Bachelors of Mass Media from HR College, Mumbai, where he has been actively doing theatre and street plays. Though he has also tried his hand at direction, he made it clear that acting is the only thing that makes him happy and he continues to be experimental with the roles.
“I want to do films where the audience can take something away from the film and learn something from it. Let's say, the roles that allow audiences to take a part of the film with them and connect with their lives. I have never kept my roles as a priority. My priority is always the movies that I am selecting. Being a part of a good movie is an honour for me because I use the role to portray the story in front of audiences,” he says.
Safary will soon start working in his next, a romantic film that is a story about relationships, college life and building a career. Talking about his upcoming project, he said, “I am working on Quickie, directed by Pradip Atluri and produced by Tony D'Souza. It's a teenage romantic comedy that will be out next year. It is a very different film because it will make a connect with people of all age groups. There's nothing over exaggerated in the movie. It will be a realistic film that will showcase real problems of life. So it will make a connect with people in their 40s as well as 20s.”
Safary is one of the few child actors in the country who has experimented with different genres. Having done Deepa Mehta's Midnight 's Children, a political period film, a superhero film with Walt Disney, Bumm Bumm Bole, that is also about brother-sister relationship and Taare Zameen Par, an emotional family drama; the actor feels proud of being experimental with his choices.
“I want to do different things as I can't stick to one thing. As an audience, there are some things that I don't like and will never go back to. That's why I have always tried different genres.”
Ask him how he feels when people recognize him as his screen role of Ishaan Awasthi, Safary opened up that though it bothered him initially, he now feels proud that his character in Taare Zameen Par touched people's lives.
“Nearly four-five years after Taare Zameen Par released, there came a stage when I felt that people should watch my other films instead of just recognising me as Ishaan. At that time, I had grown up and had done other films as well. Then my mom explained me that it was Ishaan's character that changed my life and maybe other's too. Even my parents and friends still make fun of me asking if I am able to write properly. But since it's done within a limit, I don't feel bad anymore as it takes me back to the memories that are associated while filming the movie. In fact, I don't mind people calling me Ishaan till I die,” he says with a smile.
Despite being just a few films old, the 20-year-old already has a dream role. Unlike others, it's not love for an Indian actor, but Harry Potter. “I have been a Harry Potter fan since childhood. All actors have a dream tole I think mine is to play Harry Potter. As a child, I have tried casting spells with my pencils and wooden sticks. I hope someday Harry Potter gets made in India and I get to play Harry's character in it.”
Incidentally, Safary also became the face of The Harry Potter Film Series being presented by &pictures that will be aired every week from September 17 onwards on the channel in Hindi.
