Actor Adarsh Gourav says his critically-acclaimed film “Superboys of Malegaon” struggled to find its footing at the box office as it did not have known commercial actors to bring people into cinemas.He is confident that the movie, inspired by the life of a group of cinema enthusiasts who take up filmmaking in their village, will “age beautifully”. The film was directed by Reema Kagti.“I didn’t really expect it to do really well in the theatres. It’s very hard for a film that doesn’t have known commercial actors to pull the audience into the theatre. The reason people go to theatres has changed post-pandemic.“So, you either make a big-ticket film about a big event, or cast big actors. But when you can make a really good film with people who are not really in the commercial space, it will be more difficult for you to pull the audience into the theatre,” the actor told PTI in an interview.“Superboys of Malegaon” is based on the life of Nasir Shaikh, an amateur filmmaker from the town of Malegaon, where the residents look to Bollywood cinema for a much-needed escape from daily drudgery. It starred Gourav, Vineet Kumar Singh, and Shashank Arora in lead roles.Gourav, known for his work in films like “The White Tiger”, “Kho Gaye Hum Kahan”, and OTT shows like “Hotel Daze” and “Guns & Gulaabs”, is confident that “Superboys of Malegaon” will find its audience over time.“I’m grateful that I got to be part of a film like ‘Superboys’ because I know that this film will age. Ten years from now, people will be talking about ‘Superboys of Malegaon’.” Despite his love for niche subjects, Gourav said he consciously chooses commercial cinema, including his upcoming film, “Tu Yaa Main”.“One of the strongest reasons why I wanted to be part of this film was because I did want to be part of a commercial film. I want a lot more people to know who I am. I don’t think people at large know about the characters I’ve played or about my work, and that’s fine. It’s because of that reason I’m doing this,” the actor said.Gourav hopes that the success of his commercial projects, including “Tu Yaa Main”, will help him gain more power to invest in “the writers, the directors that have been waiting on the line right now because their scripts are not getting greenlit”.Billed as a survival drama, “Tu Yaa Main” dives into the lives of social media influencers portrayed by Gourav and Shanaya Kapoor, whose romantic getaway takes a deadly turn when they find themselves trapped in a swimming pool with a crocodile.In the Bejoy Nambiar-directed movie, Gourav plays the role of a flamboyant rapper named Aalaa Flowpura. He said he used animal-inspired acting techniques to get into the skin of his character.“We did a workshop with Atul Mongia sir, and we were asked to choose one animal that we thought was representative of our character. I chose a peacock because I thought, Aalaa Flowpura, he’s got a lot of peacock in him, because peacocks like to show off a lot, especially to impress their mates, they do this entire dance,” he said, adding he previously used this technique and picked up trait of a hyena for his role in “Mom” and an ape-like physicality in “The White Tiger”.Even though Gourav is seeking to reach out to mass audiences, he said he isn’t looking to feature in a “tentpole” movie because story often takes a back seat in such projects due to the scale.“I’m not offered those films and I’m also not particularly keen on being part of a big spectacle movie. There are exceptions like ‘Dhurandar’ but usually, the big spectacle movie becomes too much about the spectacle rather than the movie or the story or the character.“I’m more interested in deep-diving into the psychology of an individual from a character’s standpoint, and then to be working with filmmakers and producers that inspire me and just help me bring out a different side of me in some way,” he said.“Tu Yaa Main” is produced by Aanand L Rai, Himanshu Sharma, and Vinod Bhanushali.
