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Ankur Vikal interview: 'You can only observe life and apply it to your craft if you are invisible'

There is nothing in common between the Netflix web series Betaal and Amazon Prime Video’s Paatal Lok, except, perhaps, their dark themes and the actor Ankur Vikal.

In the horror-themed Betaal, Vikal plays Bhunnu the engineer. In Paatal Lok, he is the one-eyed dacoit Kana Commando.

We will be seeing more of the National School of Drama-trained actor over the next few months. After the stage and the screen, Vikal is now travelling through the streaming universe with such upcoming shows as Baahubali: Before the Beginning and the third season of Inside Edge. In Amol Gupte’s under-production biopic Saina, starring Parineeti Chopra, Vikal plays Saina Nehwal’s coach.

“Sometimes casting directors remember me and sometimes I call them and remind them I exist,” Vikal told Scroll.in

. “I still go to auditions for even two-bit roles, while many actors after gaining some experience don’t. I feel like I should give everything a fair shot, and I feel rejuvenated because of the enthusiasm and spirit of young talent in the auditions.”

Some roles fell into Vikal’s lap, such as Kana Commando in Paatal Lok. “Right after finishing Baahubali, someone called me to say the person supposed to play the role in Paatal Lok, then called Jamuna Paar, dropped out for whatever reason, and if I could come for two days to Chitrakoot to shoot,” he said. “I thought,...

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