Produced by Anushka Sharma, Paatal Lok was released in 2020 and emerged as a series that captivated audiences across the nation. The series stars Jaideep Ahlawat, Abhishek Banerjee, and Swastika Mukherjee, amongst others, where Banerjee essayed the iconic character of Hathoda Tyagi. He recently revealed how he somewhat related to his character in an IMDb exclusive and how playing the part helped him through a tough period of his life.
Banerjee said, “Hathoda Tyagi is one such character which confuses me with my emotions, even till today. I don’t know whether to hate him for the criminal he is or love him for the soul he was.”
On what he learned while playing the character, Banerjee said, “During the first lockdown, I was a little hopeless with all the news and stories of death and destruction around the world. It’s bizarre that during that time, Paatal Lok was released. The trailer was released on my birthday and with all the hopelessness, I saw a ray of hope and I derived inspiration from Hathoda himself. I was confined to my home like he was confined in jail. I still remember when I was preparing for Hathoda Tyagi, the only thing I told myself was he doesn’t see the world the way we see it. He only sees death and destruction & that’s exactly what I was looking at through social media or the news channels.”
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On how the character helped him through tough times, Banerjee mentioned, “I told myself to be patient, like Hathoda was patient, waiting silently for the next job, and I kept waiting silently for my next work. In a way, Hathoda Tyagi helped me pass through the difficult times we were living in.”