Mohit Raina: OTT Is Helping Me Thrive And Take Care Of My Creative Needs

Known for his portrayal of Lord Shiva in the hit TV show 'Dev Ke Dev Mahadev', Mohit Raina has come a long way. He left television at the peak of his career and then in 2019, he made his Bollywood debut with 'Uri: The Surgical Strike'. Though his role was small he was very much appreciated for it. In 2019, he explored the digital space with 'Kaafir' and in the same year he did 'Bhaukaal'. In 2021 he was seen in 'Mumbai Diaries 26/11' for which he got lots of love and praise from the audience. His last stint on OTT was 'Ishq-e-Nadaan'. Mohit is now all set to play an Indian mercenary in Neeraj Pandey's 'The Freelancer' where he is seen in a never-seen-before avatar.

Today, Mohit is one of the most successful actors in the digital space. When Outlook India asked how he looks at his success, he modestly said, ''I don't know how to measure success, to be honest'' and added, ''but I am happy that in OTT I am getting to choose the kind of work that I want to do.''

''When I decided to take a break from television, I waited for the time when I would get different scripts to choose from. So, I think now it has been approximately five-six years since I decided to do something on the digital platforms. I have got a lot of opportunities, different scripts to choose from and to meet and work with different filmmakers be it Nikkhil Advani for 'Mumbai Diaries' or be it Neeraj sir for 'The Freelancer'. The journey has been great because as an actor what do you want. I always remember one thing 'why did I start?' I started working because I wanted to play different characters, wanted to be a part of different worlds and wanted to play different people, and human beings and understand their interpersonal relationships. That was my reason personally to decide to become an actor. I am getting to do that and I am quite satisfied and happy,'' said Mohit. 

'Dev Ke Dev Mahadev' already made Raina a household name and his Lord Shiva character has been etched in audiences' memories. Asked if there was a baggage to break that image, the actor said, ''Not at all. I don't know why people have this perception. See, there are two things- One- I have played something and created a benchmark and now nobody is able to achieve it. So, that I can consider. The second scenario is if I am getting typecast. No, I am not. The first scenario is different. I played something and I made a benchmark. If you tell me to go again and play Shiva, I also don't know how I will act or pull it off. I don't know 12 years back how I acted (he laughed). So, that has happened as the benchmark has been created.''

He added, ''There was no baggage as such because people knew I was an actor. I did a historical series, post that I did '21 Sarfarosh. So, breaking that image as an actor I would say was never an issue because makers knew that 'he is an actor and he knows how to do his job. So, let's give him opportunities to play different characters'. That's the makers' perspective because they hire me to showcase my talent and do what I do but obviously, when the audience sees it they like what I do but at the same time they remember me as a guy from the time of the TV series. So, there are two-three aspects to it basically.'' 

Mohit was also asked if, with the advent of OTT, the definition of stardom has changed. To which he replied, ''I always felt that writing is the real star of any project. Obviously, the actors and characters are secondary because unless and until the writing is there to support you, actors can't do anything. If there is a project that is not well written or conceptualised, no matter how good an actor you are, you won't be able to do anything with that. So, the star of any project I personally feel is first and foremost the story. As an actor, you do your job.''

''On OTT, I think it's an equaliser because in OTT what is happening is that you are getting a lot of ample time. For example, in a series, you have seven to eight episodes. So, the writer gets an opportunity to do justice to all the characters. If it's a story about like five characters, you have ample time to distribute and think about their stories, interpersonal relationships, their sorrows, happiness everything. You can work on them. It is the platform that has given the opportunity to everyone to do their best. Otherwise, there were lots of stories which were just limited to the script or they were just in the cupboard. But now they have come out and are taking the form of the visual medium that they are,'' he said further. 

Mohit also said that OTT has helped him a lot as an actor because he got to choose from different things he had to do. ''In Bhaukaal, I played a cop. After that, it gave me other options. I had to choose from those options. So, I decided to play a journalist in Kaafir. Then I decided to play something else in another series. So, it helps you in a short period of time, maybe a prep of one or two months and you are done in three or max four months you are done with the series. You have lived a life of a character for four months and then you move on to a different life,'' he added. 

''It's quite fascinating because you are not living one character for a long time. You live that character for a certain amount of time and then you move on. It's kind of helping me thrive and take care of my creative needs,'' Mohit concluded.