Anup Soni recalls not having proper food, looking for work and financial struggles; calls Balika Vadhu and Crime Patrol as game changers in his life

Anup Soni has been a massive name in the Industry when it comes to his craft. The actor has done a lot of work beyond his crime-based show Crime Patrol. From Bollywood, TV to OTT, Anup has made a mark with his path-breaking roles and performances. Anup got candid about his journey into acting and shared insights into the struggle that made him an established actor in the industry.

From the age of 13 to 20 I was in Jaipur and my Hindi got better there. That was the time when I got attracted to the craft of acting. I was quite intrigued with it. Before I went to NSD, for me acting was only about the screenplay and dialogue delivery. When I enrolled myself in NSD, I realised that there is a lot to do in acting. There is so much to learn and I realised that these projects and learning are a part of building up your character as an actor. I shall forever be grateful to NSD for shaping my life personally and professionally.

When you go out in the real world searching for freelancing projects, you get your first reality check there. Now what to do? After doing a few workshops, I decided to come to Mumbai with a few friends in the late 90s. The seniors advised me to work on getting a project as nobody would come and give roles.

The wave of content in Cinema at that time made me realise that I would not get lead roles. Somewhere I felt that I didn't fit in, it was difficult so let's be realistic that I won't get hero roles. So when I started seeking work, I realised that we needed a phone for contact, those were the early days of mobile phones and we couldn't afford them. So we made a deal with the PCO owner to receive the calls on our behalf and we would write his PCO's phone number.

Those days as an actor it was not organised, today as well it is difficult to get a role. However, now there is a way through Casting Directors. In those days, we didn't have them. The leads used to get cast by producers and directors. It was these assistant directors who would cast us for supporting roles. So I started trying to contact them for work.

There were these moments too in life where I contemplated my decision and wanted to go back. There was barely any food, no work and constantly going to different offices asking for a role. Luckily, I didn't go through major financial struggles as we were 2-3 friends living together. But there was this thought that parents have given a small amount so you can't ask again and again. My father belonged to a government job and there were limitations to that.

I thought there should be something, I cannot keep trying for nothing. I remember we didn't even have photoshoots. I had designed my own folder and took those pictures from my theatre days. I had that low phase where I thought now I cannot stay here. It was heavily raining and my folder broke out of the bag, seeing those pictures float in the rainwater broke me. I decided I would go back home. I took those wet photos and reached where I used to stay.

I started teaching in Kishore Namit Kapoor's acting school, and one day I came across the show Sea Hawks. I tried to reach out to the makers. I met Anubhav Sinha and went to his office, he asked me to do something. I recited a few dialogues and he gave me a role in the show. Sea Hawks was my first show and it was a big banner show. The shooting used to happen in Goa and Mauritius. I worked with the stalwarts in the show. After that, there was no looking back on my career in TV.

In those days, TV content was much better than films. I am talking about the late 90s and early 2000s. I got so busy with TV that I didn't have time. There used to be issues with the dates as I was playing lead in 4 different shows where I was doing different shades. Then I realised that I wanted to do films, so for a brief time I was dedicated to doing films.

However, I felt I wasn't getting good roles in films and then Balika Vadhu happened. I read the script and liked it. I took up the show, and Balika Vadhu became a massive hit. While doing that, Crime Patrol was offered. I was doing both shows simultaneously and I didn't even realise when 10 years had passed. The shows were called to be the game changers in TV as well as my career. I am really thankful for both shows as they gave me fame and identity as an actor. I didn't know anchoring but the show shaped me. I received a respectable status in society.

By then the web series era had entered. I realised that I had come as an actor. Obviously, Crime Patrol became larger than life and everyone started recognizing me as Crime Patrol's host only and not as an actor. Luckily, I got a chance to act in the web series Test Case. While shooting, I realised how much I missed acting as I got so busy with Crime Patrol. That is the time I decided that now I need to focus on acting and not hosting. I am very grateful to god for giving me these projects, however, for the past few years my focus has been on acting and doing some good web series.