Salman Khan | Unlike Chulbul Pandey or Radhe, Inspector Rajveer in Antim: The Final Truth is calm and motivated. Find out more on April 17, 2022 on &pictures at 8 pm. He speaks with SUPRIYA RAMESH about his experience playing this character among other things

Mahesh Manjrekar had you in mind, right from the beginning for the film. Tell us about your thoughts on your character.

Calm and conviction define Rajveer Singh, I was a bit anxious to play such a character. While I have played a cop before, Rajveer came with an interesting mix of subtlety and aggression which was a completely new ground for me. Mahesh had a very definitive vision about this film, he wanted to play with the unexpected. So, breaking away from my image of a witty, muscular cop, Mahesh thought of a character who draws his punches motivated by justice and not anger. That narration really got to me and I decided to take on this role.

Inspector Rajveer’s character is very different from the other cop roles that you have played before. Did you have anything specific in mind while preparing for it?

Rajveer Singh is a new addition to the cop roles that I have played in my career, but he is completely different from all of them. He is not like Chulbul Pandey or Radhe, his mindset is a lot more simplified and motivated to bring justice in his own unique way. He knows his power and uses it to strike when the time is right with a smile on his face. As an individual character, you may see Rajveer to be a simple, regular cop but when you put him against Rahuliya (the gangster), you see the striking difference in him. I believe the highlight was my Sikh cop look and dialect that caught the attention of the audience. When we started shooting, I felt I wasn't emoting enough for the character but when I sat down with Mahesh to discuss it, he told me, I was playing Rajveer exactly how I am supposed to. Rajveer is a man of subtle movements, fewer words — larger the action.

Tell us about your experience working with Aayush.

I was stunned at Aayush’s transformation, from Loveyatri’s boy next door to Antim’s deadly gangster, he has given his 100 per cent to the film. With this movie, he has displayed his range as an actor. He was completely committed physically and psychologically to bring authenticity to the character. It was amazing to see Aayush work so hard for the project. I see a lot of potential and his hard work really came through. Aayush is a very enthusiastic guy and that kind of aura on the set was refreshing. However, during the fight sequences, I had to constantly remind him to not pull his punches because I was in front of him.

What do you think is the most crucial element for any film to become a success?

I think films that explore the complexities of the story in the simplest ways, win the crowd. When the audience feels an emotional connection with the characters, then you have hit the right chord. A captivating script is the success defining element, complimented by the performance of the actors, catchy dialogues, and groovy music. From Dabangg to Radhe to Antim, all of these films make one big cop universe where the characters and story have the same message at core but are told differently with a fresh touch. That’s the magic of scripts.

Antim was critically acclaimed during the release. What do you think worked well for it?

I would like to believe there were multiple reasons that worked in favour of Antim. First of all, theatres were open to the audiences after a long gap and Antim was a perfect big screen movie that would deliver on the extravagance with the action sequences. Furthermore, never seen before avatars, realistic characters, massive emotional connect, not a typical cop chasing the bad guy story, worked as a hook for the audience. While the film is packed with thrilling action scenes and catchy dialogues, it offers something to everyone.