Vikrant Massey, who won the National Film Award for Best Actor for 12th Fail, recently recalled his first meeting with director Vidhu Vinod Chopra before the film, writes NDTV.
Chopra knew Massey from A Death in the Gunj and Mirzapur and liked his work, but questioned whether audiences would pay to watch an actor they already saw for free on television.
Massey said he took the criticism positively and simply told Chopra that he wanted to work with him.
During his 12th Fail audition, Massey sat in the same position seen in the film’s opening scene, impressing Chopra and securing the role.
The director also allowed him to observe the script-development process and share his ideas.
Based on Anurag Pathak’s 2019 book, 12th Fail follows Manoj Kumar Sharma, who rises from extreme poverty to become an Indian Police Service officer.
Massey starred alongside Medha Shankr, Anant Joshi, Anshumaan Pushkar and Priyanshu Chatterjee.
