Adhyayan Suman is basking in all the praise coming his way for his role of Zoravar Ali Khan in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi. Following a series of setbacks and a scarcity of opportunities, Adhyayan Suman is finally happy with all the love that the Netflix series is bringing him. Now, in an interview with Instant Bollywood, he shared that the long wait for such a meaty role has been “frustrating”. Adhyayan added that several entities had also warned Sanjay Leela Bhansali against casting him in the period drama. He said: “It is extremely frustrating…People have made perceptions about you that ‘he doesn’t want to work’ or ‘he is not serious’. I have heard them myself… I asked Sanjay sir once, when I was having lunch with him, ‘Sir, why did you want me to cast me in the show.’ It turns out people had asked me not to cast me.”
Adhyayan Suman also added that Richa Chadha sent him a voice note after shooting with him, on the first day. About the message, Adhyayan Suman said: “It is very personal so I will not go into details. She said, ‘I had this prejudice against you because people said that he [Adhyayan Suman] is spoiled, he is a star kid, he doesn’t want to work.’ She said, ‘Adhyayan, I am now angry at myself for having believed this at one point. But when I saw your dedication and passion at work, and Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s validation towards your work, my entire perception changed.’ It was very kind of her to do that.”
Adhyayan Suman also mentioned that upon collaborating with him, many people expressed surprise, expecting him to be arrogant, only to find him quite the opposite. “I said, ‘Why would I be arrogant? What do I have? Even if I had something, why would I be arrogant…I am grounded. I have seen success and failure. I have learnt so many lessons.”
He added that such comments about him are “heartbreaking” and that he is working to change the false perceptions surrounding him.
About being cast in the show, Adhyayan Suman earlier told News18, “I got a call from Shruti Mahajan (casting director) to audition for Zorawar’s character. I was celebrating my parents’ marriage anniversary somewhere in the Himalayas. I got the call when I was travelling there. At one o’clock in the afternoon, I was told that Mr Bhansali would be seeing my audition at three. Somehow, I managed to stop the car in the middle of the mountains and make an audition clip sitting in the car. I begged, borrowed and stole some network from people and sent the tape. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the role. To be honest, if I had auditioned and not gotten the part in any other filmmaker’s film or series, I would just let it pass. But this was Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s show and it’s every actor’s dream to work with him. So, I was extremely disappointed that it didn’t work out for me.”
But soon things changed for Adhyayan Suman. He shared: “My father always tells me that if something is meant to be, it will be and nobody can snatch anything away that’s destined to happen. The shoot of Heeramandi started with the other characters. Two days before they were supposed to start shoot with the actor who was supposed to play Zorawar, he was suddenly asked to leave and I was brought in. It’s just outstanding how it all happened.”
Heeramandi, which revolves around the lives of the courtesans of Lahore pre-independent India, is available for streaming on Netflix.
