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Neil Nitin Mukesh On His Early Days: Many People Didn't Want To Accept A Singer's Son Or Grandson As An Actor
Neil Nitin Mukesh made an unconventional debut in Bollywood with Sriram Raghavan's 2007 neo-noir thriller Johnny Gaddaar in which he essayed the role of the youngest member of a gang of five criminals. Since then, the actor has always picked up roles that's far away from his comfort zone.
His affinity for thrillers is visible if you look at his filmography which comprises of films like New York, Jail, Players, 7 Khoon Maaf amongst others. In fact, he dabbled with this genre even when he made his writing debut with Bypass Road in 2019.
Sharing the reason behind the same Neil told ETimes in an interview, "Seventy per cent of my career is filled with thriller films, I must have done more than 30 films in that genre. And now, when I write a film, naturally I like to write in the same genre. I have grown up watching fiction, make-believe cinema and I like to venture into a larger-than-life space."
He also opened up on his early days and recalled how many people weren't keen to accept a singer's grandson or son as an actor and felt that he should sing and give up acting. Neil revealed that he was offered Jaane Tu...Ya Jaane Na but he choose Johnny Gaddaar to make his Bollywood debut and the gamble paid off.
The Saaho actor said, "When I was younger, I used to get influenced by people's opinions and never understood my forte or passion, but after facing many rejections at auditions, I realised that I have to do something different. Many people did not want to accept a singer's grandson or son as an actor, and they treated me politely because of my legacy. They even felt I should sing and give up on acting. That was not encouraging. But, thanks to the late Jhamuji (Sugandh, producer) who offered me two films - Johnny Gaddaar and Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na. I had seen Sriram Raghvan's films and loved Ek Hasina Thi. So, even though Jaane Tu... was a love story, I decided to opt for Johnny Gaddaar and the gamble paid off."
Neil revealed that his parents were upset with his choice but today, people recognize him for that role. He said that he deliberated picked up hard-hitting roles as he wanted people to sit up and notice him.
I opted for this film because it was a hard-hitting role, and it would consolidate my position as a good actor from my first film. My parents were upset with my choice, but today people recognise me for Johnny Gaddaar. And soon after that, I deliberately started choosing films like 7 Khoon Maaf, New York, Players, Jail and Wazir, which were hard-hitting roles. I wanted people to sit up and notice me because many felt a singer's son cannot act. So, in that context, I am not in the rat race. I also feel that we need to bring back strong characters in our cinema.
Neil was last seen in the 2019 film Bypass Road which was helmed by his brother Naman Nitin Mukesh.
