While ‘Dhurandhar 2’ is making history at the box office, the film starring Ranveer Singh, directed by Aditya Dhar, has become the talk of the town online and every member of the cast is getting appreciation.
Actor-producer Bimal Oberoi, who portrays Shirani in the series, may be currently going viral in memes, but his journey to fame has been far from typical.
From working in music videos and producing to eventually acting, his career has steadily evolved over the years. Bimal spoke about his long-standing relationship with Daler Mohandi, and credited him for playing a crucial role in shaping his path.
He said in an interview with Fereydoun Shehryar: “Daler Mehndi is a friend, a brother and a mentor. We became friends in the early 1990s, when he was just Daler Baji and he was not yet a Daler Mehndi. When his album Bolo Ta Ra Ra was released, he said to me: ‘Bimal, let this album come out, and I will take you to Bombay.’ And he did.”
“He also revealed how Mehndi supported him financially during his initial days in Mumbai. “He gave me 12 checks of Rs 10,000 each for a year, handed them to me together and said: ‘These are your monthly expenses, start your journey now.’
This is how our association began.”Interestingly, Bimal’s foray into on-screen performance happened almost by chance during the shooting of the hit Mehndi song Ho Jayegi Balle Balle. “When he came to shoot Ho Jayegi Balle Balle, I had just gone for the shoot. The directors said there’s a part – can we give it to Bimal? Baji said yes, and it was decided there himself. I ended up playing a lead role in the video, and that song became a huge hit.”Before fully transitioning into acting, Oberoi spent several years learning the secrets of the camera. He has worked closely with Anubhav Sinha in Tom Penn, gaining experience in various aspects of film making. “My first film was Anubhav Sinha’s Tum Bin. He involved me in casting and scripting, and I learned production with him.” He also recalled his previous works in the music industry, adding, “Before that, we were making music videos – Daler Mehndi, Pankaj Udhas, Sonu Nigam – we have worked on very big albums.”Looking to the future, Bimal said he has many exciting projects in the pipeline. “There are some very good things in the pipeline. I have a role in David Dhawan’s film Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai. I have also done an international film, a Canadian production. After Dhurandhar, I have another good film – Dragon by
Prashanth Neel
“And we started shooting.”
