Veteran stage actor Vijay Kumar is enjoying his negative character in Star Bharat show, Nimki Mukhiya (Qissago Telefilms).
Says Vijay, “What I like best about Tetar Singh (lead Abhishek Sharma’s on-screen father) is that although he is black, he has several others elements to him as well, which a normal villain will not have.”
Hailing from Bihar himself, Vijay says, “I try to add my own mannerisms and local dialect to the character, to make it more relatable to the audiences of the region.”
Here Vijay adds, “While Nimki Mukhiya does try to add lots of drama and romanticism to the core theme of political machinations in the Hindi heartland, a lot of what is shown actually happens on the ground, in the former historical empire of Pataliputra.”
“The biggest bane of criminalization of politics is the rise of the local strong man, colloquially called Bahubali (he plays one, in the show). At first, political parties use these bad elements to capture power but later they themselves become politicians. These people need to be weeded out for peace and prosperity to flourish in country.”
Dwelling on the image of Bihar, he says, “Sadly, mass media focuses more on the negative elements. There is much positive also going on, especially in the field of education, which sadly does not get reflected. Also, another big problem is that young professionals, who had left the state, still don’t want to return.”
Vijay, who has done other TV shows such as Chand Chhupa Baadal Mein, Ruk Jaana Nahin, Desh Ki Beti Nandini, feels it is high time the Idiot Box came out of its me-too syndrome. “We only want to copy what works. Also, there is too much drama.”
Besides TV, Vijay has done a few films as well. “I prefer a storyboard of offbeaters.”
Although he was a part of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, it did not really help his career. “On the contrary, I enjoyed my efforts in Anaarkali of Aaraah. I have a couple of more films in my kitty.”
He is also keen to try his hands at web, “if something juicy comes along.” However, he is not supportive of the rampant s*x and abuse in internet content. “If the same is presented aesthetically, it is not wrong. For example, Khajuraho and the Ajanta Ellora caves also depict all forms of sexual encounters, yet they do not look vulgar.”
Nicely put, Vijay!!