Would utilise my privilege to represent common man: Vikrant Massey

NEW DELHI: Ten years and close to 20 movies later, Vikrant Massey says he is grateful to have gained the ''privilege of choice'' as an actor and would like to utilise it to continue to be the voice of the voiceless.

Massey forayed into films with ''Lootera'' in 2013, which came after a television stint that saw him in popular daily soaps like ''Balika Vadhu''. In the last decade, the actor has established himself as as a dependable performer by seamlessly moving between niche and popular with movies such as "Dil Dhadakne Do", "A Death In The Gunj", "Lipstick Under My Burkha", "Chhapaak" and most recently ''12th Fail''.

He credits writers, filmmakers and producers for their belief in his calibre which put him in a better position in the competitive film industry.

''I recognise that I now have the privilege of choice. I want to utilise this privilege to do the work I want to, which is acting, tell stories and entertain people, but also represent the common man. The idea is to tell human stories and be the voice of the voiceless,'' Massey told PTI in an interview.

The privilege, however, doesn't change his course of action. Massey, 36, said he will continue to look for characters that let him experiment and move ahead.

''I've gotten more than what I asked for. The idea is to look back and be grateful. But at the same time, I realise that this is not just it. I want to do much more and go out there. I believe I've a lot within me that I want to share, through my stories, my work and the choices I make. It has been decent so far, but it has just begun,'' he said.

His latest effort ''12th Fail'', directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, aligns with this ''core value''. A story of ambition, dedication and restarting, the film is based on Anurag Pathak's best-selling novel about the incredible journey of IPS officer Manoj Kumar Sharma and IRS officer Shraddha Joshi.

From working at a young age in order to support his family to his unshakable self-belief, Massey said he resonated with Sharma's life story on many levels. ''I come from a middle class family, some days when I look back in retrospect... We were probably a lower middle class family... Maybe it was his struggle to support the family. I also did that at the age of 16, and no 16-year-old wants to go out and work for 12 hours a day when your friends are playing. I did that. ''Hope, faith, failure and aspiration,'' the story's universal emotions also excited Massey for the role.

''One of the major reasons to be a part of '12th Fail' was probably I would get to share my own experiences through Manoj Sharma and my own worldview through this character,'' he added.

The film also features an impressive supporting cast in Medha Sharma, Anant V Joshi, Anshumaan Pushkar, Sanjay Bishnoi and Priyanshu Chatterjee.