Scam 2003: Gagan Dev Riar opens up on his prep, experience of working with Hansal Mehta and more

Gagan Dev Riar is an Indian actor, theatre artist, director and writer. He is known for playing the lead role of Abdul Karim Telgi in Hansal Mehta-directed web series Scam 2003. The actor gained critical acclaim for his finesse-filled performance in the series. Furthermore, Gagan has acted in films and OTT shows like Sonchiriya, Not Fit, and A Suitable Boy. He has over 15 years of theatre experience and has worked with several esteemed personalities like Late Shri Pandit Satyadev Dubey, Sunil Shanbag, Rajit Kapur, Purva Naresh and Atul Kumar. In a recent exclusive interview with Asianet Newsable, Gagan Dev Riar opened up on his prep for the character, his experience of working under the direction of Hansal Mehta and more.

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Opening up on his preparation for getting into the character of Abdul Karim Telgi in the series, he said, "The physical preparation for my character needed me to gain some weight. I had to work on the tonality of how he would speak in the series and the language that he uses, all these technical things, with Hansal Sir and Tushar Sir's direction. I took one step at a time and hopefully have managed to do a decent job."

Opening up on his experience while working under the direction of both Hansal Mehta and Tushar Hiranandani for Scam 2003, Gagan said, "I think that they both have different styles. But they complement each other. Tushar is a much more stylish director. Hansal Sir keeps things simple and very real. What you will see is a mixture of both elements. They complement each other and gel well. Some scenes look stylish in the series, while some look real and simple on the screen. It was a learning experience to work under the direction of both of them."

Opening up on how OTT is a new booming avenue for actors who want to do intriguing and content-backed roles and stories, Gagan adds, "OTT has opened up doors for many actors like me who might not have six packs or do not look like Greek Gods, but they are really good at their craft. OTT has given them a platform. We are lucky to be in the times when these actors are there who work on their craft. They are good at this because OTT really gives them a good platform to showcase their talent."

Giving his thoughts on how he wants the recently released Scam 2003 to break the benchmark set by Scam 1992, Gagan Dev Riar shares, "As an actor, I hope that it breaks all the previously created records by Scam 1992 because everyone wants their new work to perform better than previous one. But, even if it is not much better or more loved than Scam 1992, the series has set a tone for the people. It really works for people we have already seen. So, hopefully, it will happen."

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• Scam 2003
• Scam 2003 interview
• Gagan Dev Riar
• Gagan Dev Riar as Abdul Karim Telgi
• Gagan Dev Riar interview
• Scam 2003 on Sony LIV
• Sony LIV series