Pratik Gandhi: Regional cinema has the power to tell stories rooted in our own soil

One would argue that with the massive success of his recent web show and new film offers pouring in, actor Pratik Gandhi has finally arrived, but for the actor, the theatre continues to hold a special place in his heart. After a long hiatus, Pratik, known for his work in Hindi films like

Luvyatri

, Mitron, and Ravan Leela, returned to his ‘first passion’ — theatre — with Mohan’s Masala (

Mohan No Masalo

) at Tata Theatre at the

National Centre for Performing Arts

, earlier this year. A popular name in the Gujarati theatre and films, Pratik has been acting in the biographical one-man play since 2015, based on episodes from Mahatma Gandhi's life that many are not aware of. After the roaring success of

Scam 1992

, helmed by Hansal Mehta, Pratik is excited to take on new projects. “The world has really changed for me!” he says, adding, “The way people now look at me has changed, hence a lot of good, interesting projects — Hindi films and web shows — being offered to me. I guess, now people have more faith in me as an actor than earlier.”


Playing Gandhi

Pratik Gandhi as Mohandas in 'Mohan's Masala'

About playing Mahatma Gandhi, Pratik says, “I guess, people have always concentrated more on what he (Mahatma Gandhi) did after he became Mahatma, and not what he has gone through during the entire process of becoming that. And I guess, that is the interesting part of playing him. He was a man of multiple failures that led to his ultimate success. We are just trying to bring that aspect of his personality and life on stage.”

Originally written in English by Ishan Doshi, Mohan’s Masala got Pratik the Limca Book of Record for performing a monologue in three languages — English, Hindi, and Gujarati — in a single day. Ask him how he continues to bring freshness to the character even after so many years and he says, “Theatre is the only place which gives an actor the opportunity to create the same character again and again. It has also got a lot to do with the training we get as theatre artistes. The older the play, the better it becomes. News places help me add new nuances to the character. Besides, the mere fact that I will be performing on stage, gives me that adrenaline rush and the kick to recreate that same character again.”













One-man show, no cakewalk

Pratik admits that monologue/one-man show is the toughest format of acting for a stage artiste.“It takes a lot of training and preparation to achieve it perfectly; you must know how to keep all your senses awake. There is no fallback mechanism in a monologue. There are no co-actors to help if you forget your lines. There is no give and take and no action-reaction of actors. You have to be a hundred times more prepared for it. So, if you get stuck, it's a nightmare!” says Pratik.

Online theatre vs live performances

The pandemic crippled the art and entertainment industry, with theatre being shut for months on end. “The pandemic has affected theatres and it is one of the worst-hit sectors in the entertainment industry. There were no shows for almost a year,” says the actor, adding, “Although we have started putting up shows, people have started coming in for the shows, there still is a lot of fear around people to come, which is true also for the fact that it’s not a matter to take lightly.

Pratik as Mohandas in 'Mohan's Masala'

Amid the pandemic, theatre groups in India and abroad went online to keep the art alive and engage with their audience, however, Pratik feels the experience of watching a live show is matchless. “There are a lot of people who tried doing a lot of things in the theatre. They tried making a place for theatre on OTT platforms, shot their plays in one room, and put it up online, but I personally feel, theatre never works online. It is a medium where you see things happening live in front of you. The moment you record the play and put it up on any platform, you have to tweak the script in a different way — a script that works for stage won’t work for the screen. So these two mediums cannot be merged. With OTT platforms coming in, there are a lot of things changing and all, but theatre is here to stay.”

Pratik GandhiPic: Instagram/@pratikgandhiofficial


The power of regional cinema
Pratik, who has acted in Gujarathi film

Love Ni Bhavai

, Ventilator, Wrong Side Raju, among others, when asked about regional films making their presence felt at prestigious film festivals globally, says, “Regional is the next national or international. The regional cinema has that power stories rooted in our own soil. There is no pressure of stars or of great box office collections, so they are open to doing more experiments and they should be doing more of that.”