"It was coming a full circle from being a tiny dot in OUATIM to a face in 'Sultan of Delhi" - Anjumm Sharma

All set to star in his first mega project in terms of scale and ambition, actor Anjumm Sharma is indeed excited about the possibilities it can lead to and the process of shooting for the same as well. The actor, who continues to be known for his role as Sharad in Mirzpur Season 2 is currently playing the parallel lead in Sultan of Delhi on Disney+ Hotstar.

In an exclusive at-length conversation with us, we talked about his experience of shooting a period piece for the first time and having to persevere as an actor for such a long time before getting noticed and making a mark.

Q. Considering this is your first-period piece, how was the vibe and mood overall while shooting for a period project as opposed to a normal film/show? 

Yes. It is my first period piece and has been an incredible first experience. Because, you know, when you get to work on a period project, and it's a great thing that if the project has been directed by, you know, a legendary filmmaker like Milan Luthria, because, you know, his palettes are anyway so massive, so larger than life, you know, entertaining. So all those things were really something which I got excited about. And having said that, yeah, from the very beginning, like the kind of detailing Milan Sir and other, you know, HODs from Costume, Mallika and Jia were doing, our DOP, Vishnu Rao, I must take his name. He has created splendid, incredible visuals of the show, which actually is a unique, you know, visual language of any show possible on OTT, you know, which we, which is quite evident in the trailer, which we have seen. Personally, for me, it was, you know, everything from hair to my costume, because the character had such incredible, colourful and, you know, exciting costumes, scarf, all the elements, lighters, cars, bikes, the weapons which we were using, you know, every element was just bringing an opportunity to just jump into a situation and enjoy it and have a great experience, which one would cherish for a very long time.

It was a life coming full circle because long back, I was part of a very tiny dot of one of Milan Sir's great films, Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai. 

Q. After having played roles of hero's friend, sometimes even the friend of hero's friend to now, it has been quite a journey for you. Then Mirzapur happened, and things changed for the better. During this whole process, though, how has it been? What led you to persevere throughout?

Well, I can write a complete book on that to reply to that. Yes, but I would keep it very precise for now. It has been a journey of 9-10 years. And as you rightly said, yeah, initially the kind of things which come when you're starting, when you're struggling and auditioning, that was a huge process. Then, there are times when you are very close to getting a part, but for some reason, either the project is not happening or something else is not happening. So, you know, all those experiences are a part of every actor's journey. So these are the, I mean, now I don't look upon to them with any kind of stress or something, because I think that's a journey. That is something that I chose because I wanted to make certain choices. But yeah, you know, having said that, if only I talk about Sultan of Delhi and Milan Luthria, like for in this particular thing, also it was a life coming full circle because long back I was part of a very tiny dot of one of his great films, Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai. 

I was a newcomer, and it was one of those things that I was doing. Then, I mean, I hardly remember speaking to him also, you know, in that film. But, again, it was a great experience and a great story, which I still carry because, you know, one has heard about so many different instances when the actors or probably the stars have had some journeys when in the initial part of their career, they have been seen almost like a junior artist in some sequences, standing on a lane or, you know, being one of the goons of the main guy. So, that was the same for me initially. But then when this day came, and then I went on my separate journey, then Mirzapur happened and, you know, that changed things, and I was very happy.