Bobby Deol Reflects on Career Revival: Embracing Villain Roles After Hitting Rock Bottom

Bobby Deol grabbed attention with his powerful performance in Animal and has since been busy with multiple projects. He will next be seen in The Ba**ds of Bollywood*, marking Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan’s directorial debut. He also plays a key role in Anurag Kashyap’s Bandar, which recently had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival.In conversation with SCREEN, Bobby said, "Today, I have become more brave and fearless. I have moved away from what my image used to be. The web shows I acted in were very helpful in this regard. In between when I did not have any work, I took acting classes. I asked myself: why did my career have a good start? That’s because people saw something in me. However, because of my wrong choices, my career suffered. I worked on regaining faith in myself as well as being disciplined. If you are disciplined, you can put more effort into your work without feeling the pressure."Elaborating further, he added, "In this industry, one tends to get typecast. It is tough to break that mould. OTT gave me that chance to come out of it. Playing an antagonist character and getting appreciation is something I had not imagined. However, every antagonist has to be different — be it my character in Aashram or Animal."Earlier, talking to Mid Day, Anurag Kashyap admitted that he sees shades of himself in the protagonist, Bobby's character. “The story is of a has-been. Bobby understands what failure means. He has lived through that and come back stronger. That’s why I knew he was perfect for this role,” Kashyap explained.Kashyap also recalled Bobby confiding in him during the low phase in his career. He shared, "Bobby said that if he passed by a house where shooting was happening, he would cry or get angry, wondering why nobody wanted him. At 40, someone suggested an acting workshop. Later, he played a dark character in Aashram and realized the freedom in not always being the hero."Meanwhile, In Bandar, Bobby Deol leads an ensemble cast including Sanya Malhotra, Saba Azad, and Sapna Pabbi. The film’s release date is yet to be announced. Meanwhile, The Ba***ds of Bollywood* is set to release on Netflix on September 18.