‘Golondaaj’ actor Alexx O’Nell on his Kolkata love, working in Tollywood, what's next and more

“It was an incredible honour just to have been nominated,” says Alexx O’Nell who arrived in Kolkata today to shoot a television commercial in the city. For the unversed, the India-based American actor and musician’s performance as Frederick Jackson in Dhrubo Bannerjee’s ‘Golondaaj’ yielded him a nomination for ‘Best Actor in A Negative Role’ from the West Bengal Film Journalists Association recently.

“Of course, I would have loved to have won,” he continues, “but for this group of esteemed journalists, who watch and critique films day-in and day-out, to acknowledge my performance as one of the top 2 of 2021 … That is an incredible compliment!”

While he could not attend ‘Cinema Somaborton’, Alexx was overjoyed to see so much appreciation not only for his ‘Golondaaj’ team members, but also for director Srijit Mukherjee who introduced the actor in the Bengali Film Industry with ‘Yeti Obhijaan’ in 2017 and featured him most recently in ‘Robindronath Ekhane Kawkhono Khete Aashenni’ last year. “It always feels great to see friends receive the recognition they deserve. It was especially nice to see my Golondaaj co-star Dev take home the ‘Most Popular Actor’ award,” he exclaimed.

Best known for his work in English and Hindi cinema, Alexx is however hopeful that the success of Golondaaj, his 4th Bengali-language project, will lead to more frequent outings in the industry. “I’ve always loved West Bengal and even before my first Bengali project hit screens, I’d already shot Hindi and English projects like ‘Chittagong’ and ‘Bose Dead or Alive’ here.” Despite media reports that his next Bengali language film features him opposite actress and producer Ena Saha, Alexx is not revealing anything quite yet. “I can tell you that it’s a lovely project, but beyond that you’ll have to wait and see.”

Returning to the city for the first time since ‘Golondaaj’ promotions during Durga Pooja last October, Alexx feels delighted to be back again in Kolkata so soon. “Kolkata has always had a special place in my heart, and so I’m grateful to keep getting opportunities to spend time here,” added the actor.