Exclusive: Arjun Mathur On Made In Heaven 2, Silence...Can You Hear It And Being The Busiest Actor In Lockdown

Actor Arjun Mathur's performance in the web series Made in Heaven wowed many and left a tear in the eye of the viewers. No wonder then that he was nominated at the International Emmy Awards 2020 for Best Actor for the Zoya Akhtar series. Mathur will next be seen in the film Silence...Can You Hear It? on ZEE5 that releases on March 26, 2021. He plays the prime suspect in this investigative murder mystery, which also stars Manoj Bajpayee and Prachi Desai in the lead.

FilmiBeat speaks to Arjun Mathur about Silence..., Made in Heaven seaons 1 and 2, and of queer representation for such characters on screen, about work offers in the pandemic in the over-the-top (OTT) medium, about life in lockdown, and about his favourite shows he binge-watched. Excerpts from the interview.

Can you tell us about your role in Silence...Can You Hear It?, and that have you done something like this before?

In Silence..., I play a young, suave politician, MLA Ravi Khanna. He is a character with some grey shades. He is someone who, from the first time you see him, you will not be able to put a finger on him or his intentions. That's where the mystery lies. It's something that I haven't actually done before because, I have not been a part of a murder mystery or suspense thriller before. And as you can tell from the trailer, I play the prime suspect in this film. So, definitely something that I've never done.

It's nothing like The Accidental Prime Minister...

The what? What are you talking about? I don't remember it. What? (Laughs) That's the one film I've done that I try to forget.

The Amazon Prime Video web series Made in Heaven is the highlight of your career. Congratulations again for the Emmy nomination for it. Your performance made one break down - it touched hearts. The second season of Made in Heaven is on its way, right?

Thank you so much. Aw! I am sorry, and I'm glad (laughs). Lovely.

Yes, we are shooting for the second season of Made in Heaven in Delhi at the moment. We're going full steam and will shoot till July-August 2021. Hopefully, by the end of the year or early next year, you will get to see it.

How does the story of Made in Heaven move forward? Can we get a sneak peek into it or some trivia?

Of course, not! (Laughs) I can just say that all the main characters involved, their stories evolve in new and unpredictable directions. I'm definitely quite surprised by the direction that it moves in and it's very interesting. I really don't want to say anything more, 'cos I will be in a lot of trouble for it.

But the core business remains the same of the two leads (Arjun and Sobhita Dhulipala), right? And a different story in each episode?

Of course. Made in Heaven is a company that plans weddings, so that can't change. About each episode's story, I suppose...(trails off).

Does your character find love in the second seaon of Made in Heaven?

That you will have to wait and find out.

Since we are talking about Made in Heaven, what is your say on the portrayal of queer characters on screen? The recent web series by Ekta Kapoor, The Married Woman, is also being talked about for its sensitive portrayal of a same-sex connection. It's really coming of age in India. Do you have anything to say about it?

Yeah. I hope it's coming of age. Same-sex relationships are such an important part of our society, our history and even culture. I am glad that they are coming more and more into mainstream narrative. We have a long way to go still. I would like to see more and more queer actors who (would) proudly step out and claim all the queer characters are written. We have a long way to go, but at least us at Made in Heaven, we are doing our bit by chipping away at the block. That's what we have to do, generation after generation, until everything is normalised.

You've done an international project, too. Are you looking for more work in Hollywood?

I've done an international television show called Indian Summers. And then, I've actively tried to do more and more work which is seen all over the world and not just in our cinema halls. I have representation abroad and I certainly want to work more internationally because, we have a huge audience around the world and I don't see why our emotions or our stories should just be limited to us.

Are you getting more offers abroad after the Emmy nomination for Made in Heaven?

Let me be honest. (In the pandemic) Right now, India is pretty much the only place where work is happening. LA (Los Angeles) or Hollywood is at a standstill. Not many productions are taking place. The work that's happening is quite limited.

Rather, they must be looking for work from India.

Yeah. That is true, in fact. I know someone who was telling me that there are technicians in LA who are looking to come to India, because this is the only place where work is on in full swing. And, of course, you can see that the COVID-19 numbers have also increased. But this is the situation we are in.

How did you take to the pandemic? It has been tough on a lot of actors and people from the industry.

I was quite fortunate because I was at home with my partner and two cats. I was also very lucky, as I was possibly the only actor in India who got to be a part of two projects that we shot in my house. One was a short film, Home Stories, and the other was a series called The Gone Game. I was one of the few actors who had these opportunities and I think these offers definitely played a part in keeping me sane! Other than that, my lockdown was not any different from anybody else's. We cooked, we cleaned, we binge-watched lots of things and we got through it.

Is there anything you're watching right now or have watched on streaming / OTT platforms that you want to talk about?

There is just so much that I watched. I even did repeat viewings of shows like Breaking Bad because, my partner hadn't seen it. One of the shows that I watched for the first time in lockdown was This is Us. It is such a beautiful show, I can't tell you. I'm really glad I binge-watched it. Now I'm waiting for the next season to finish shooting. More recently, I also just finished watching Marvel Studios' WandaVision. I am a huge Marvel Universe (MCU) fan! WandaVision was just amazing and a really spectacular show.

Everything is releasing on OTT in the situation. A few films did release in theatres in India, or films like Tenet abroad. But some content or material is only made for the big screen, do you feel like that? Or are you ok with watching everything on OTT?

There is some content that is made specifically for the big screen. But that content is now limited to the VFX movies, 3D and IMAX movies. For everything else, most people have created the experience at home. I am perfectly ok with that, to be honest. I mean, going to the theatre has its own charm, to watch something in a community, to experience those emotions together as a collective. But this is the situation we are in currently. I had stopped going to the cinema theatre for anything except Marvel Studios' movies. So, I am not too affected. And even career-wise, I was doing a lot of work that was more focussed on OTT. In fact, the situation has ushered in a golden age for actors like me who were not able to find their foothold in A-list, commercial Bollywood, so to speak. And now, it's our moment to shine.

Definitely. And it's going to last for years.

Yeah. There will be many people who will be sad that I'm saying this, but why should I be complaining about theatres shutting when it has opened up so many career opportunities for me.

You have been an assitant on film sets in the beginning of your career, including on Aamir Khan's Rang De Basanti. Do you want to take up direction in the future?

Maybe. It's not a decision I have made. I am open to it, but it's not so easy. I am not a writer, so first and foremost, I will have to find the right material that inspires me and the right people to collaborate with. Because, 50 percent of direction is putting the right team together. Given the right set of circumstances, definitely I would direct some day. Right now, I am just entering a new phase in my acting career and getting into gear with that, and I think at least the next 10 years, I want to focus in that as an actor and give it my all.

What are your forthcoming projects apart from Made in Heaven 2 and The Gone Game 2? Is there a Made in Heaven 3?

Apart from these two, I have (Anshuman Jha's film) Lord Curzon Ki Haveli, which we are shooting this year. I have my hands full at least till September 2021. Let's see beyond that. I am in talks for several things. I think it's far too early to talk about Made in Heaven 3.