Vikas Verma Exclusive Interview: “I Like To Play Negative Characters”

Charming, handsome and sculpted, Vikas Verma is a well-known model-turned-actor who keeps appearing in movies as well as television shows.

Vikas Verma is currently in news for his upcoming mythological show Jag Janani Maa Vaishno Devi, which starts on 30 September, 2019 at 9:30 pm, Monday to Saturday, only on STAR Bharat.

Ahead of the grand premiere of the show, STARBIZ caught up with Vikas Verma to know more about Jag Janani Maa Vaishno Devi, the character that he plays on the show, what makes it different from other mythological shows that have hit the small screen over the years, how devotional is he in real-life, and much more. Excerpts…

Please tell us about your character in the upcoming show Jag Janani Maa Vaishno Devi.

I am playing a villain on the show. His name is Moor. He is the king of Asuras (demons). When the Samudra Manthan (churning of the ocean) happened, the Devas (Gods) drummed out all the Asuras. After a long search, the Asuras found an abode below the earth.

Moor kept adding on to his power day by day and soon became the king of Asuras’ kingdom. When his wrongdoings crossed a certain limit, Maa Vaishno Devi took birth to save the world from his tortures. How the two meet and battle out with each other is what you will see when the show hits the tube.

This is not the first time when the audience will see you in a mythological show. What drew you to be a part of it?

When I heard the script of the show, what I liked most about it was the fact that the show was based on Maa Vaishno Devi. I am a huge devotee of her. I connected to the show then and there only. Then, obviously, I heard my role. It is a negative character.

I like to play negative characters. I always try to get my hands on such characters. You have to put in your sweat, blood and tears to pull off a negative character. That is why I wanted to do this role. I wanted to do an out-and-out negative character.

Moreover, this role is completely different from what I have done before, even in the negative zone. This role presents me in a totally different avatar. I will be looking completely different on screen. My voice will sound different. To give birth to a character like this is very difficult for an actor.

So, it was a challenge for me to get into the skin of this character. When I first saw the look of the character that I am playing, I found it to be quite intriguing. So, I thought, ‘Let’s do it’.

You said you are a follower of Maa Vaishno Devi in real-life too. Have you ever experienced her miracle?

I call her Maa. Whether you believe it or not, there is divine power in devotion. Miracles do happen. Today, I am standing in front of you is her miracle. I listen to her devotional songs every day. At times, I sing them too. The way a mother takes care of her child, Maa Vaishno Devi is taking care of me. What else can I say!

Will there be action sequences as well on the show?

Yes, of course. The story has just begun. You will get to see a lot of stuff as the storyline progresses. You will see some intense, powerful scenes and several action sequences as well. We have shot the Samudra Manthan, which you will get to see immediately after the show goes on air.

After a couple of episodes, there will be several action sequences. Since it is a mythological show, so the action will definitely be there, between Gods and demons. Sometimes Maa Vaishno Devi will be an action mood, the other times you will see me in an action avatar. But it will take some time as, I said, the story has just begun.

The audience has seen dozens of mythological shows over the years. What makes Jag Janani Maa Vaishno Devi different from other mythological shows on television.

I think I have never seen such level of hard work on any other mythological show ever produced. Our VFX team has worked untiringly to deliver something that the audience has never seen before on television. The entire team has undoubtedly worked really hard on the show.

Why should the audience watch your show? What is its USP?

As I said, nobody has shown Maa Vaishno Devi’s story in such detail. Our show will air six days a week, from Monday to Saturday. It is in continuation. People will not have to wait long to watch the next episode as they will be catching it the very next day.

People love to watch such shows. How Maa Vaishno Devi was born, how she attained power and what all she went through, the audience will get to see each and everything on our show in detail.

I think we have seen mythological shows on every God and Goddesses. I believe there is only one supreme power, but avatars are different. As far as I have experienced, nobody else has ever attempted to tell Maa Vaishno Devi’s story in such detail. This is for the first time when her story is told from her childhood to adulthood. Apart from that, our show also tells several other important stories, including the one of Tri-shakti.

What are other projects in the works for you?

I am doing some films. Apart from television, I keep doing movies side by side. I am doing Coolie No. 1, which will be hitting screens in May 2020. We will talk about the film next time. Today, we will just talk about Jag Janani Maa Vaishno Devi.

Produced by well-known television producer Rashmi Sharma under the banner of Rashmi Sharma Telefilms, Jag Janani Maa Vaishno Devi hits the airwaves on 30 September 2019 at 9:30 pm, Monday to Saturday.