In his decade long career in the entertainment industry, Mrinal Dutt has essayed a wide variety of roles. With ‘Hello Mini 2’ he reprises the character of Danny which he had played in the first season of the show. In this interview, the actor talks about the new season of the successful show, how has his character evolved, why he prefers being a part of finite shows, passion for cricket and more.
Do you think Danny, the character you play in the show, evolved in these two seasons?
It has evolved for sure. The character started on a different note. He came from a dysfunctional family and was trying to find a foothold in a city like Mumbai. He meets this girl and realizes she is going through a lot of turmoil in her life. He takes care of her and helps her get out of the situation she is in. They get into a steady space in their relationship and start living together. At this point, it feels like all the bad things have been left behind but then, something terrible happens again. Though the second season is coming a year and a half after the first season was released, there is not much of a time gap between the events happening in the two seasons. We have picked up the story from where it ended in the last season. But yes, there is a shift in terms of the character being more responsible and being there for Rivannah. As they are living together, their relationship has reached a certain point. Now that Rivannah is in trouble again, it becomes very difficult for Danny to imagine her going through a lot of pain again.
Though we often hear about women going suffering from the kind of harassment Rivannah goes through in the show, a lot of men suffer from these things too. Have you ever faced a situation when somebody stalked you and made you feel uncomfortable?
I have not faced anything of this sort personally. Yes, you do have people sending you weird messages on social media but that is a part and parcel of the job. I have had friends whose social media profiles have been hacked and they went through a lot of issues because of that.
You started out with a very popular show called ‘Roomies’ which used to be aired on a youth -based TV channel back in the day. Since then, you have largely picked up offbeat roles. Has that been a conscious decision?
Yes, it was a conscious decision. At the end of the day, you have to pick the best from what you are offered. I was trying to find stories that would be exciting and told well. I have always been drawn towards finite shows and now because of this digital boom, one sees so many of such shows getting made. A lot of good stories are being told and many directors and technicians are getting opportunities.
Cricket was one of your biggest passions at one point of time. Would you like to do a project which centres around the sport?
I would love to do that. Sports has been a huge part of my life. I bungee-jumped a couple of days back. I still play cricket with friends. I would love to a film or series on cricket.
One of your upcoming projects is a short film called ‘The Prince’.
Yes, ‘The Lonely Prince’ has been screened at many festivals and has garnered a very positive response so far. It talks about the sexuality of a prince. There are a couple of other projects in the pipeline which I will talk about soon.