Entertainment industry should give talented actors a chance rather than casting good looking artists: Mainak Banerjee

It’s more than a passion for Mainak Banerjee, who fell in love with acting at a young age. Like any other regular fellow, he grew up watching the charismatic actors on-screen beating up the goons, grooving the audience with their perfect dance moves, wooing the damsel in distress and making every other heroic moves! Mainak whose old show ‘Roopkotha’, is having a re-run on a popular channel, shared how the ‘acting bug’ changed his life. Popularity, hits, flops, criticism, nothing could change his love for acting. In a candid conversation with ETimes TV, Mainak shared his journey… (Photo: Facebook)

It all began when Mainak was young. “Like any other family, we had some ground rules. Watching television other than a few certain shows was a strict no no. I used to wait for dad to leave for the office. Then I would find out the window from which the sound of television from the nearby household can be heard properly. I used to sit by that window along with my books. But rather than reading, my ears were more vulnerable to the sound of songs coming from the window. I used to get mesmerised watching the actors on-screen. It was magical and I gradually realised I want to be an actor too,” says Mainak. (Photo: Facebook)

Mainak shared how Mithun Chakraborty’s movies changed his life. “I am a die-hard fan of Mithun Chakraborty. I grew up watching his movies and consider him my idol. His journey from the guy next door to Bollywood star has always inspired me. When I was young, I used dad’s razor to make my hairstyle like him. Soon after coming back from the office, dad found out. Please don’t ask me what happened next,” Mainak laughed while sharing. “When I was in school, Mithun Da attended a function at Danlop. I rushed to meet him. By that time, a huge crowd had gathered and things went out of proportion. As Mithun Da waved at us, we all rushed towards him. I was mere a kid, I fell and got almost stampeded. Fortunately, my friend helped me to stand up. I got a bit injured. Thankfully, dad had mercy on me and didn’t beat me up this time,” he laughs. (Photo: Facebook)

Not many people are aware that Mainak’s first introduction with camera was during ‘Police Filez’. “I played a very small part in the show. It was 2003 and facing the camera gave me the taste of ecstasy,” he adds. During college, Mainak started modelling. (Photo: Facebook)

In college, Mainak realised that 9 to 5 job isn’t his cup of tea. “I gradually realised 9 to 5 job isn’t for me. I joined a theatre group. Prior to that, I wanted to be like Salman Khan- a glamorous superstar. But theatre changed my vision. I learned glamour isn’t the ultimate thing. To become an actor you need to learn the grammar, you have to give your heart and soul.” (Photo: Facebook)

Playing Shiba’s character in multi-starrer TV show ‘Asambhab’, was his first big break. “The show had a very strong cast. I played Shiba’s character in the show. The character became popular within a very short time. It changed things for me.” (Photo: Facebook)

The success of his television show worked in favour of Mainak. The handsome actor bagged movies. “Soon after the TV show, I bagged the movie Amar Sangee opposite Ridhima Ghosh. It was quite successful. I remember how a huge crowd gathered only to catch a glimpse of us. Deep inside, I felt really good. Next few films of mine didn’t work well. Some didn’t even get any promotion. As soon as my movies flopped, I saw the same crowd fading away.” (Photo: Facebook)

Mainak has been a part of this industry for a long time. He has done TV shows like ‘Roopkotha’, ‘Thakurmar Jhuli’, ‘Aloukik Na Loukik’ and others besides films and web projects. When asked how he considers his journey, Mainak added, “In past 12 years I have seen it all. I saw success, I saw the downside too. I have done TV shows, films, web projects. Some worked well some didn’t. My take away from these years is- nothing lasts long. What all matters are hard work, dedication and honesty.” (Photo: Facebook)

Speaking about the television serials Mainak opined, it’s time to focus more on the content. “We should focus more on good content. During the era of Doordarshan, we saw some iconic television shows. Many of those shows were based on literature, it had an enriched content a beautiful story to tell. Later, we saw good telefilms as well. But over these years, television is mostly dominated by saas-bahu sagas. It’s time to focus more on the content because people have other mediums of entertainment too.” (Photo: Facebook)

Bengali television and film industry currently have actors who have a strong theatre background. Most of them are seen playing character roles while the lead characters are mostly played by good looking heroes- be it in films or television. Sharing his view on this, Mainak adds, “We have many young talented artists around us. They are really talented and eager to work. Personally, I believe, we should have more actors like Anirban Bhattacharya. Not one or two. There should be many more actors like him. The industry should give the talented actors a chance rather than casting good looking artists. See looks, attitude, well-built body are added advantage but that’s not all. Talent is something far beyond this. It is time when we should acknowledge this,” says Mainak.