‘Artificial Intelligence is alarming’

Actor Sharib Hashmi, known for his brilliant performances in ‘The Family Man’, ‘The Great Indian Murder’, ‘Scam 1992’ and ‘Asur’, is gearing up for Aneek Chaudhuri’s Hindi film ‘The Zebras’, which will hit the floors soon. Aneek, a notable name in Bengali cinema, is exploring the theme of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in his Hindi directorial. ‘The Zebras’ also marks the Bollywood debut of Bengali actor Priyanka Sarkar. Fresh from the success of his recent OTT biopic ‘Tarla’, which chronicles the life of the renowned chef Tarla Dala, Sharib couldn’t be happier with his career graph at the moment. He has just shot a cameo in the action thriller ‘Fighter’, starring Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone. The ‘Millennium Post’ spoke to the actor on ‘The Zebras’, how ‘Family Man’ changed his life and more:

What convinced you to do ‘The Zebras’?

The premise of the film intrigued me. Also, I am playing the character of a photographer and in real life, too, I love clicking photographs. I also liked the way Aneek Chaudhuri’s script shed light on the Artificial Intelligence (AI) boom and its impact on the fashion industry.

Did both Aneek and you want to do a film for a long time?

Yes, we have been in touch for a long time now and wanted to work together. While there were discussions about other projects, none of them materialised. But then he shared the idea of ‘The Zebras’ and I found it extremely interesting. I heard the entire narration and immediately agreed to do the film.

Are you well-informed about the Bengali film industry, given that Bengali actor Priyanka Sarkar is making her Bollywood debut alongside you in ‘The Zebras’?

Recently, I haven’t watched any Bengali movies, but I have watched cult classics like ‘Agantuk’, ‘Charulata’ and ‘Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne’. ‘Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne’ is still fresh in my mind.

There’s a lot of talk about AI across industries. AI is also a central dispute in the Hollywood strike. Do you think AI might have a detrimental impact on the film industry?

AI is the central theme of ‘The Zebras’. So, I can’t divulge much about the plot. However, I believe AI is harmful and people have already started losing their jobs in every field. It’s alarming.

Do you ever feel any regret that despite your roles in ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, ‘Jab Tak Hai Jaan’ and ‘Filmistaan’, it was ‘The Family Man’ that finally brought you fame and Bollywood may have taken longer to recognise your talent?

I don’t regret it because nothing was in my hand. All I can say is that everything is destiny. I was doing my job with utmost sincerity and honesty. In fact, ‘Jab Tak Hai Jaan’ did well at the box office. ‘Filmistaan’ also received a lot of critical acclaim. I did sign a few good films post ‘Filmistaan’, but then some of the films got shelved and some never took off. Then, there were some that got made but couldn’t find the window to be released as they were independent films. Never in my wildest dream did I think that I’d return to the ‘struggling phase’ post ‘Filmistaan’. It was a difficult time in my career. I am really grateful to directors Raj and DK, casting director Mukesh Chhabra and ‘Amazon Prime’ for giving me JK in ‘The Family Man’. It completely changed and gave me a new lease of life.

So, when is ‘The Family Man’ season 3 coming?

We haven’t started shooting, but hopefully, soon we will hit the floors.

The advent of OTT has provided a fresh platform for actors and skilled technicians.

From actors and directors to writers who wanted to tell different stories, OTT has been a sheer blessing. For me, OTT completely changed my life. ‘The Family Man’ was followed by ‘Asur’, ‘Scam 1992’, ‘The Great Indian Murder’ and ‘Tarla’.

Your upcoming projects.

There’s a thriller with Sharman Joshi. Then, I’m doing a project with ‘Maddock Films’, which I can’t disclose. My character in Shivam Nair’s ‘The Diplomat’ is really interesting. Also, I just completed shooting a cameo in ‘Fighter’ starring Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone.