Want to have versatility in parts I pick: Mrinal Dutt

Actor Mrinal Dutt, who has made a mark for himself with his performances in web-series "His Story" and sci-fi short film "55 km/sec", says his hope is to work with talented directors and build a versatile filmography.

The actor, who hails from Delhi, started his career with television before venturing into the digital space. He found success with shows such as "Upstarts" and "Hello Mimi".

In 2020, Dutt was particularly noted for two projects -- "His Story", a queer drama series, and short film "55 km/sec".

"I just want to have versatility in the parts that I pick. I want to do every kind of work because I have just started. There are a lot of talented filmmakers that I want to work with," the actor told PTI.

"I also know that if something doesn't pan out, then it's not the end of the world. If you don't have something today, there's a good chance you will get it tomorrow," Dutt added.

The 32-year-old actor said he realised his passion for acting during his graduation days in Zakir Hussain College.

"In college, I became very much active with drama society in the last two years. I used to participate in a lot of street plays in the Old Delhi area, where our college was situated.

"After that, I attended some workshops with Act One and from there I got the opportunity to do some advertisement. When I landed in Bombay, I was lucky as I started getting work soon," Dutt said.

Though he initially worked in television, the actor is glad that he was able to avoid the quintessential soap operas.

"The work I did on television was a finite series. I did two shows and they had 17 and 20 episodes. I did not work on those typical soap operas. The shows I did were well-written with a defined story and character graph.

"In digital, things are done with a lot of clarity as it is a writer's medium and they have the liberty to write what they want," he said.

Dutt currently stars in series "Khwabon Ke Parindey", which started streaming on Voot from June 14.

The show explores the journey of friendship, hope and life of three friends through the picturesque landscape of Australia.

It revolves around the lives of three friends Bindiya, Dixit and Megha who are joined by Aakash - a quirky and rugged hitchhiker on an adventurous and life altering road trip from Melbourne to Perth.

About the series, Dutt, who plays Dixit in the series, said, "When it came to me, it sounded very exciting on paper as it was a coming-of-age show about three friends in Australia."

"Also a very cool group of people were behind it, so it had everything that I was looking for. It was a nice opportunity and I got to visit Australia as well. There was no reason for me to say no to it, it ticked all the boxes," he added.

Shooting for the road trip drama felt like actually going on one, Dutt said, adding that he did a lot of things that people do during such trips.

"The only difference was that during a road trip, you would stop at a place and witness and explore that area. In this scenario, we wouldn't get time to explore the area. All we did was to travel and then shoot at that place for 4-5 days before moving on to the next location.

"However, we did get the feel of a road trip as it was an independent film crew. We spend a lot of time together."

Directed by Tapasvi Mehta, "Khwabon Ke Parinday" also features Asha Negi, Manasi Moghe and Tushar Sharma.