The second season ‘Breathe: Into the Shadows’ is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video with actor Abhishek Bachchan returning as Avinash aka JJ along with supporting casts including Amit Sadh, Nithya Menen, Naveen Kasturia, Saiyami Kher, and Ivana Kaur in pivotal roles. The first season was released in 2020 and since then fans have been eagerly waiting for the next season. However, more than the story, it's Abhishek’s hold on strong emotions and beautifully presenting it on-screen that has garnered praise and love on social media.
Produced by Abundantia Entertainment, the psychological thriller is directed by Mayank Sharma who also has co-created season 2 alongside Arshad Syed, Vikram Tuli, Priya Saggi, and Abhijeet Deshpande. Abhishek is currently flabbergasted with all the positive reviews it has received. In this interview, he talks about his reaction to the response, preparation, and his over two-decade journey in the entertainment industry.
Excerpts from the interview:
Q. The judgment is out for 'Breath: Into the shadow' season 2. How satisfied are you with all the feedback as many are saying that Abhishek Bachchan as Avinash aka J has evolved when it comes to emotion?
Abhishek: We are very very happy and it's very encouraging to read the good things about all the hard work that the team has put in. I think any actor will tell you that the show's success is the sum of all the hard work team has put in so, as an actor, can't really take the credit. it has to be the team so we are very very happy and very excited about the reaction that we are getting. I mean it's not been 48 hours (at the time of this interview) and I was just told by Mayank and the Amazon team that we are trending at number 1 in India which is a wonderful achievement and we are very humbled and thankful to the audiences.
Q. Would you like to talk about the most complex part of this show? Was there a pressure to repeat the same success story that season 1 has created?
Abhishek: That's always something that you are thinking a lot about. You want to try and be better than what you did last time around. You don’t want people to feel bored in the second season so a big challenge especially for Mayank and the writer was to how you improve on what you did last time. That was something that we paid a lot of attention to and I am glad people are reacting to that positively
Q. We saw the diverse shade of you as an actor with your OTT projects in the past two years. Do you think as an actor, the streaming platform has given you more space and freedom to show the versatility you have as an actor?
Abhishek: No, my job as an actor is the same whether it is for films, television, stage, or digital streaming sites. You have to do your best on whichever platform it is. It's about wanting to be part of good stories and I have been very lucky that I had the opportunity to associate with some very diverse storytelling so I am very very excited
Q. You've been in the industry for over two decades now so what were the learnings and if you took note of your mistakes?
Abhishek: I think every day is a learning experience and every film teaches you something. As long as you are open and receptive to wanting to improve, you will always come out a richer actor in that sense, and it's been fantastic and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. Whatever little I am today is because of the experiences that I have managed to accrue over the last two decades.
Q. At this stage in your career, what do you look at when you pick your films or projects?
Abhishek: You know it's very difficult to choose just that one thing that you look for. I think you have to look at it more from a 360-degree point of view. Does that whole project entirely appeal to you? Does that story inspire you? And I think that will be the most generalized way to say it.
Q. But is there any change in the moviemaking process?
Abhishek: I don't think so. There are no changes, there are absolutely no changes. We are storytellers and we still have to tell a good story. That's it and there is no change in that.
Q. Has there been anything on OTT that you watched, that you really wish you could have experienced watching in the theatre?
Abhishek: I am not sure I think like that when I watch something. I view it and I don’t really consider the platform where I am viewing it. For me, watching a show or a movie is a very personal experience and I have never really thought about it in that way. I don't think that way that oh I wish I had seen that on the big screen.
Q. What’s the status of your future projects?
Abhishek: Well, I have currently got one film which is called 'Ghoomar', which is directed by Balki with Saiyami and myself and that should be releasing pretty soon and then there is another movie of mine which is almost ready called 'SSS 7'.so these are two films that are ready for release and the rest are all work in progress.
