I never had to struggle much for work: Atul Kulkarni
What's the story
Actor Atul Kulkarni believes it's surreal that he has not only survived through the highs and lows of the industry but also never gone out of work in the last 25 years.
Kulkarni said though he has battled his phase of "uncertainty and survival" in the industry, he has been blessed with a consistent flow of work.
Drama
Kulkarni first garnered praise as Mahatma Gandhi in a play
The actor, who grew up in Solapur and moved to Mumbai in the mid-90s, first garnered praise as Mahatma Gandhi in the play Gandhi Viruddha Gandhi, which caught the eye of actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan, who cast him in his 2000 drama Hey Ram.
"I was extremely lucky because I got my first professional play within three months of landing in Mumbai," the actor said.
Phases
My phases of uncertainty have been few: Kulkarni
"Kamal Ji heard about the play and called me for Hey Ram. I actually didn't have to struggle that much to get work," he added.
"There are phases in every actor's life, but my phases have been few and for a short period, where I did worry about the uncertainty and survival. But it never reached an extreme stage," he said.
Beginning
Was clueless after graduating from National School of Drama: Kulkarni
Kulkarni established himself as a bankable performer with films such as Rang De Basanti, Chandni Bar, among others.
Survival was a question that Kulkarni grappled with before he entered the film industry.
When he graduated from the National School of Drama in 1995, Kulkarni said he was clueless about how his acting journey would pan out. The film industry looked like a distant dream.
Passion
Kulkarni has worked in nearly 100 movies
What kept Kulkarni going was his passion for the job.
Kulkarni said he was drawn to acting after he participated in a one-act play in his college in Solapur. Since then, he figured he wanted to act, not as a hobby, but as a profession.
Over the years, Kulkarni worked in Hindi, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada films, featuring in nearly 100 movies.
Information
'City of Dreams' was Kulkarni's first major OTT show
Season one of City of Dreams was Kulkarni's first major OTT show in 2019. He has since featured on another hit series, Bandish Bandits. Kulkarni said his endeavor is to constantly adapt to changing storytelling landscapes and moving from one medium to another.