BNA gave me wings to fly high: Taanashah actor Dilip Arya

Actor Dilip Arya of

Taanashah

fame and alumni of

Bhartendu Natya Akademi

visited his alma mater recently to be a part of the ongoing Rang Samagam festival.
Dilip, who played the lead role of

Shiv Kumar Patel

aka Dadua, a dreaded dacoit of Bundelkhand in his debut film Taanashah, put a lot of hard work to get into the skin of the character. Talking about his preparations for the role, he says, "It took around four years to prepare and I even spent a lot of time in and around the area of Bundelkhand to understand the character more closely. I also spent time with the bandits in Bihar to understand the nuances of the role."

Dilip Arya (BCCL)
Hailing from a small village in Fatehpur, where his father worked as a mason, Dilip's story to tinsel town has been of grit and perseverance. "After my father passed away at the age of 11, I started doing menial jobs while my mother worked as a farm labourer. Later, to earn a better living I joined a tailoring shop and also kept my studies going," says Dilip, reminiscing his childhood days.
Now, a postgraduate from Kanpur University and also an alumnus of Bhartendu Natya Akademi, Lucknow, Dilip's dream was to join the National School of Drama (NSD) so he moved to Delhi. "I started doing theatre with a local group there and also worked with NK Sharma's group for a while. Later, I applied for NSD and went all the way to the last round which is the workshop. Well-known actors Pankaj Tripathi and Inamul Haq were also there in my group at that time in the workshop," shares Dilip. "But BNA was the place which gave me wings to fly high. I learned all the nuances of acting from some very learned teachers which paved the way to where I am today," shares the actor.
His dream to enter films took him to Mumbai, where he began hosting on various channels. He got his first break as the protagonist in the film, Taanashah, which has been directed by Lucknowite Ritam Srivastav and released in February this year. The UP born actor now has his hands full but the projects have been delayed due to the ongoing pandemic. "The success of Taanashah gave my career a boost and currently I am doing three films as lead. Though the films were supposed to start in May and June but have been delayed due to the ongoing pandemic," says an elated Dilip.