Neel Bhattacharya: It is a good combination to have social media followers and acting skills | Exclusive

Neel talked about his debut on OTT, his take on the virtual life of social media, and a lot more. 

Neel Bhattacharya

Television actor and social media influencer Neel Bhattacharya debuts on OTT this year with Debaloy Bhattacharya’s Boka Bakshote Bondi. The series that also features Solanki Roy was dropped on Hoichoi on June 21. Neel plays a serial actor – Pratik, aka Indro – in the web show. 

While Boka Bakshote Bondi was released in June, Neel technically shot another web series, Milkshake Murders, for Klikk before the Hoichoi show. Directed by Riingo Banerjee, the show also features Neel’s actress wife Trina Saha and Saurav Das. In fact, that show will also be released soon. In a chat with OTTplay, Neel talked about his debut on OTT, his take on the virtual life of social media, and a lot more. Read on… 

Neel Bhattacharya on debuting on OTT

“I knew I would take a break from TV and work in Milkshake Murders when I was working on Bangla Medium. We waited till the serial was over. In December last year, I prepped for it and in January, we went to Thailand for the shooting. I got the offer of Boka Bakshote Bondi in December and we shot it in January end and February,” said the actor. 

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Also read: Saurav Das, Neel Bhattacharya, and Trina Saha team up for a brand-new web series

Television serials vs web series, according to Neel

Talking about having his primary experience in working on web series, Neel said that after working on television for years, ‘everything seems easy’. “Television is a grueling job. After working in serials, the shooting of OTT seems easy. You have time to think about your character. In television, you constantly work on one single character for days and months. Here, you focus on one character just for a few days. In serials, your scripts are unusually no less than 15-page-long and actors and actresses mug that up in 30 minutes. Here, you have one or two-page-long scripts. You shoot a couple of scenes a day. One gets time to think. There was no rush, no adverse situations cropping up. One can experiment a lot more on the web,” said the actor. 

Trina, Neel’s wife, stepped into the world of OTT a little while ago. She is also Neel’s co-star in Milkshake Murders. Did she give him any suggestions? “We always discuss and collaborate, especially when we are working together,” he said.

Realities of social media, according to Neel 

Neel and Trina are also social media biggies. While Neel has more than 900K followers, Trina has a whopping 2 million followers. They often work together on brand endorsements and other promotions. “We do what we like. It is not a mandate for us. Yes, we take it very seriously but we prioritise our activity over our social media activities. We create content only when we feel like doing it,” said the actor.

Also read: Boka Bakshote Bondi actress Solanki Roy: Will never glorify domestic abuse on TV for the sake of my character | Exclusive

Neel is well aware of the fact that a solid social media follower base often helps in getting acting offers. “We all know it’s there. If you have huge followers, you might get an offer quickly. However, if you cannot act, those offers will be meaningless. Social media followers can get you the first offer but you will have to know how to do the job. Your 20-second-reel cannot show your calibre as an actor. Honing acting skills and having stable social media followers is a good combination for an actor. Social media is important and one has to embrace what is new. 

Neel Bhattacharya on his next project

Neel will soon be back on the big screen. After Tilottama, he is in talks with his friend director Soumyojit Adak. They are to work on a thriller and the shooting may start in November. The film may also feature Saurav Das – his co-actor from Milkshake Murders. “Ten years ago, Saurav and I worked on a serial, Thik Jyano Love Story. That was my first serial. Ever since we have been friends. We gel well. I feel comfortable working with him. Talks are on with Soumyojit,” said the actor.    

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