Adhura actor Rahul Dev: OTT has given a new lease of life to my career, though I still get stereotypical roles

In his career spanning two decades, Rahul Dev has mostly done intense roles — a brooding cop or a trigger-happy villain — and it’s only obvious that he has earned that tag of being the ‘serious' guy onscreen. And hence, it comes as no surprise when the actor himself feels that he has been boxed into stereotypical roles.

“The problem is that I did similar kind of roles in theatrical films. Though all of them were strong characters, it felt like I didn’t try out anything else,” admits the actor, adding, “I was shooting for Ashoka as well as Awara Paagal Deewana. While the former was a positive role, the latter showed me as the bad guy in a comic film. So, it used to get stereotypical because the pressure on the producers used to be humongous. In those times, they didn’t want to take risk and whoever was popular in a certain kind of roles, they would just cast that actor. So, I kept getting repetitive in what I was doing.”

Even when he forayed into the web space, things didn’t change much, notes the actor, who has starred in OTT films such as Operation Parindey and Torbaaz (2020), Raat Baaki Hai (2021), Gaslight (2022).

However, the 54-year-old is quick to add that the digital medium does give a scope for more diverse and satisfying roles that would go beyond stereotypes. “I still get typecast in negative roles, I’m not denying that. But, it definitely has reduced now. Mujhe ab OTT shows mein kaam karne mein zyada maza aa raha hai,” asserts Dev, who was seen in the recent web series Adhura.

In fact, Dev doesn’t hesitate in admitting that digital medium has breathed new life into his career. “OTT has given a new lease of life to my career, and there is no denying that. And not just me, a lot of people, including my friend Bobby (Deol)... Look at this series Aashram — it took off like anything. For me, things changed after I played Wazir Khan in the web show The Empire,” he mentions.

Much like other actors, Dev, who has also starred in web shows including The Test Cast, Poison 2, Who’s Your Daddy and Hunter Tootega Nahi Todega, believes that the web offers creative fulfilment beyond mere box office numbers.

“The quality and convenience of the content on OTT have attracted audiences so much. Some people like it, some don’t, but it is going to be there. As an artiste, you feel creatively satisfied after doing OTT projects, and it is not just about numbers, that ‘Maine ₹500 crore ka dhandha kia’. I’m a product of commercial cinema and I love commercial films, but, there always used to be an underlying thought where I wished somebody gave me a creatively satisfying role,” Dev tells us.