Vipin Sharma: Negative Publicity Works Only To A Certain Extent, Ultimately The Film Has To Win The Audience’s Heart

Vipin Sharma has received a lot of praise for his release ‘Bandaa’, where he plays the defence lawyer again Manoj Bajpayee, who plays the plaintiff. The film has become one of the most-watched films on OTT this year. Its immense success is proof that even today if the content is really good, a film can do wonders.

Talking to Prateek Sur, Vipin Sharma opens up about some memories from the sets, how character artists strive for such roles and does he think negative publicity works for any project. Excerpts from the candid chat:

Any memorable on-set moments/instances from ‘Bandaa’ you would like to share?

I once kept my phone under some files that were kept in front of me as part of the set design. It was a serious moment of Manoj (Bajpayee) and the damn thing rang as soon as he started his dialogue. I wanted to disappear under the floor. Hugely embarrassing it was.

While they say character actors have to strive for the spotlight against the leads, Advocate Sharma made his presence felt in every scene. What do you think about this age-old notion?

I personally don’t consider myself a character artist. I am an actor, period. I hate labels. Also, I didn’t have to strive for anything. I just tried to do my job as best as I could. A lot of advocate Sharma’s presence was also felt because of my respect for Manoj (Bajpayee) as a person. That shows very clearly in the film. Both as an actor and the character in the film. Something very hard to explain.

Do you think negative publicity works for any film?

Only to a certain extent. Ultimately the film has to win the audience’s heart. And not just one or two hearts- millions of them – unanimously.