Setting his sights down south

Pavail Gulati

Sometimes, a director can leave a strong impression on an actor, even influencing his creative sensibilities and choice of projects thereon. Pavail Gulati considers Malayalam director Rosshan Andrrews to be one such influence. Working with the director on his maiden Hindi film, Deva, has been "a transformative journey" for the actor, who is now eager to try his hand at south Indian cinema. "I would love to work on a south Indian film, especially Malayalam, as they showcase some of the best stories," he says.

In Deva, which also stars Shahid Kapoor and Pooja Hegde, Gulati will be seen as a rebellious cop entangled in a high-profile case. Before joining forces with Andrrews, the actor had watched many of his Malayalam movies, including Salute (2022) and Kayamkulam Kochunni (2018). "Roshan sir has a fantastic sense of humour. I like working with him because I can talk to him about various subjects. There is so much to learn from him. While his way of working is different from mine, collaborating with him has helped me get a different perspective of cinema, treatment and storytelling."

These new learnings have made the actor curious about exploring different facets of Indian cinema. Before he sets his sights down south, has he picked up the Malayalam language? "I wish to learn it. Hopefully soon, I will get a chance to do something in Malayalam cinema. Learning the language will be a task. But that's the beauty of this profession - to face new challenges in terms of roles and subjects."