Exclusive: Aditya Seal Ticks Off Working With Priyadarshan From His Checklist, But Says, 'My Thirst Is Not Quenched'

Aditya Seal is constantly looking for a challenge with every role he takes and so far his filmography has proven it. Right from Tum Bin 2 to Student of the Year 2 he has been giving fans a fresh side of him each time and his latest outing, a short film Anamika helmed by Priyadarshan is no different.

Talking about the Zee5 film with the director who Aditya admits has been on his checklist for a long time, he tells us that he said yes for the project in one go and was willing to do the film “even if I have to be a tree in the background somewhere.”

Describing his work experience with the Hera Pheri filmmaker Aditya easily proclaimed him to be ‘pure genius’. “You go in with an expectation, that you know, that Priyam sir will have a certain way of working that he would be a taskmaster, he was completely opposite of that.”

The SOTY star described his first day of shooting Anamika in vivid detail and said, “I reached Chennai, I am in my hotel room and tomorrow we’re supposed to shoot and I am panicking because I am usually the one that wants to know about the character and all I am getting to hear is ‘You come on set tomorrow, Priyam sir will take over.’ So nothing was given to me, I knew the story obviously but no lines and all.”

 “I reach the set on the next day and Priyam sir is like, ‘Don’t worry I’ll make it very easy. You take this line memorise it and don’t think about anything else. Don’t think about how you’ll perform it just, memorise it’”, he continued.

Anamika is one of the four films in the anthology ‘Forbidden Love’ and tells the story of a married older woman, played by Pooja Kumar, who falls in love with a charming younger guy played by Seal. The movie is already getting rave reviews online after its recent release and Aditya couldn’t stop himself from mounting praises on the filmmaker and his process for it.

“He’ll tell you what rhythm and where he wants you to pick a line or a particular dialogue from, he makes it so easy. It’s like spoon-feeding. He knows exactly how he’s going to edit the film while he’s shooting it. That is genius.”

The actor who was anxious at first about the whole shoot says he was placated rather quickly on his first day on set after he learnt Priyadarshan’s style. “After half an hour of the first shot being taken, I was like ok I don’t have to do anything, this will be the simplest shoot for me. He’ll do everything and come and tell me what else has to be done and I just have to go and replicate.”

Anamika may be a short film and the first time Aditya collaborated with the filmmaker but he definitely feels he isn’t done with the experience just yet. “Now the problem is, my thirst of working with him is not quenched. I need more of Priyadarshan now. This was an amazing journey for me.”

Aditya Seal will next be seen opposite Kiara Advani in Inddo Ki Jawani and has also signed Bosco Martis’ debut directorial Rocket Gang.