Freedom at Midnight 2 actor Anurag Thakur reflects on his career and series

Therersquos something unnervingly convincing about Anurag Thakur when he slips into character mdash so much so that even his family struggled to separate the man from the role Whether he played a cop in Vikramaditya Motwanersquos Black Warrant 2025 or took on the recently released Freedom at Midnight 2 by Nikkhil Advani Thakur leaves a mark Widely appreciated for his performance as Madanlal Pahwa the actor talks to midday about his approach tackling the lull between projects and why theatre remains his first loveExcerpts from the interviewShowrunner Nikkhil Advani said your performance stood out and you are one to watch out for What reactions have you been getting for Freedom at Midnight 2Yes Nikkhil sir called to thank me for trusting him with this role He was glad it came out the way he wanted it Sir told me lsquoYou are my Manoj Bajpayeersquo My sister who didnrsquot know Madanlal Pahwa asked my father about him He told her it was Anurag The reactions have been unexpected and beautifulStill from lsquoFreedom at Midnight 2rsquoYoursquove been working in the industry since 2015 According to you what has been your breakthrough projectAccording to the audience of course Black Warrant mdash itrsquos a Vikramaditya Motwane series and a beautiful show Despite having worked for a long time Irsquod also say Black Warrant showwise Since then things have changed for the betterWhen it comes to playing a reallife character compared to a fictional one does your approach changeThe basic approach is the same where I focus on the backstory and the mental and physical transformation of it But if I have a reference photo or a reference video of the character then I obviously try to adapt to it Luckily for me Madanlal Pahwarsquos reference is only in name so I had the freedom to portray him the way I wantedStill from lsquoFreedom at lsquoBlack WarrantrsquoHow did you build the character without referencesAll the information I got from the script I wrote it down in a diary I also started reading up on him from books and the web I researched what was going on in the country at the time In one of the articles I had read he had lost his index finger while making a bomb I asked Nikkhil sir if it was okay to keep the finger bent I thought it would help me relate to Madanlal Pahwa moreDid anything shown in the series differ from what you knew of the Partition storyI think the show was written in a very balanced and neutral way so I did not feel any anomaly I didnrsquot focus on what my opinion was in school when we studied about the Partition When you have a director like Nikkhil sir you trust his vision writing and everything he does Moreover I am not a critic judge or filmmaker I approached it as an actor with sole focus on my character To mentally align with my character I had to keep repeating in my head Yes I have to kill someone How else would you actually convince yourself to kill or assassinate someone The backstory references and the things that have happened with him during the exodus convinced Madanlal to do itIt takes time to make a name in the industry and among fans How do you keep your passion alive through the strugglesBy working I kept doing theatre and workshops with friends I have been part of a theatre group in Delhi I was also a teacher I wrote directed and acted in plays when we formed a new group mdash Bayaar Theatre Group I also keep sharpening my skills as an actor Right now I am not doing any films or web shows But I am in the play Hum Hum written by a close friend on February 3 The play Irsquom performing on February 21 is called Aham Murakami a HindiJapanese drama written and directed by Lovely RajBetween theatre and movies what gives you creative satisfactionSince I have spent more time on stage right now it is theatre for me But the more I am working on camera I feel that there is no major difference between the two mediums Some technical things are very different like theatre requires teamwork but on camera you can act alone minus the technicians on set After a point both are the same for me The ultimate goal is to be happy honest to my craft to be able to keep exploring and stay passionate