Actor Aditya Seal, whose latest film Amar Prem Ki Prem Kahani has broken stereotypes, says it was an effort to normalise same-sex relationships
For actor Aditya Seal, each role must bring a challenge — a challenge to think, to act and to become someone starkly different from his previous role. So, when he landed the role of Prem in Amar Prem Ki Prem Kahani, despite reservations, he was a bit unsure. The feedback to this queer love story, which released earlier this month, has Aditya elated. “The response I have got has been very overwhelming,” says Aditya, who has Ek Chhoti Si Love Story, Student of the Year 2, Indoo Ki Jawani and Tum Bin 2 to his credit.
What really worked for the Hardik Gajjar-directorial Amar Prem Ki Prem Kahani, according to the actor, was an effort to normalise same-sex relationships. “Our story’s focus is not the struggles, but it goes one step ahead of that. We just want to portray them as two people in love. It could have been any gender.” Aditya is happy that someone shared on Instagram how the film helped him open up to his family about his orientation. “To make a difference in someone’s life…It really touched me.”
The shoot for the film was spread across London and Chandigarh, but with a very small crew. “The journey to become Prem was a lot of fun, honestly. It was just an interesting challenge that I took up. There were inhibitions that it could not come naturally to me. But as I started playing Prem, it just became a lot easier to be him.”
Aditya also levels much credit to his co-star Sunny Singh, “I had a good co-actor with me, Sunny. So, he made it easier. Because he was constantly Amar, it made it easier for me to be Prem.”
The thrust on Punjabi-Bengali family differences worked well too, “It just felt like a Bengali-Punjabi love story. We forgot that we were doing a love story between two men.”
Navigating web world and films, Aditya is focused on the process. When not acting, he loves to travel, “Meeting different people from different cultures is my way of broadening horizons.”
Amongst his upcoming projects are Mudassar Aziz-directorial Mere Husband Ki Bibi, which also stars Bhumi Pednekar, Rakul Preet Singh and Arjun Kapoor. Then there is Maharagni— Queen of Queens, directed by Charan Tej Uppalapati. “It’s with Kajol ma’am and Prabhu Deva sir. We have done the first schedule and I am looking forward to its next.”
Acting for him is like taekwondo, a way of life, “Acting is something that I want to continue to keep doing for the rest of my life,” he signs off.
