Although there has been no dearth of debuts, today most guys playing the hero in Bollywood are at least in their 30s. So, it was refreshing to talk to a 24-year-old actor who's just beginning his journey as a leading man. His first experience of watching a movie in the theatre was for Bunty aur Babli (2005) as a 5-year-old. And he couldn’t catch his favourite Bollywood hero, Hrithik Roshan’s sensational debut film Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai, which made Roshan a superstar—Bollywood’s last bona fide one overnight—simply because he was not even born then. “I was a huge Hrithik Roshan fan, and Krrish was one of my favourite films to watch as a kid. I would watch all his movies in the theatre. Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai was one movie that I watched much later as I was born only in 2000,” chuckles Vedang Raina as we sit down for an interview post a rather elaborate five-hour-long shoot. He looks exhausted but his voice has not lost its exuberance. 

As luck would have it, his first gig as a model was in an advertisement with Hrithik Roshan. “It was an HRX shoot. But it is weird, although I have been one of his biggest fans since childhood, I didn’t get starstruck when I met him on set,” says Raina.

Movies have always been a part of his life. While his mother was a huge Bollywood buff and would often take him to theatres to watch movies, it was his dad who was instrumental in exposing him to world cinema. “My dad introduced me to Bruce Lee movies when I was -10 years old. He also gave me the complete physical collection of Sherlock Holmes and even JRR Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings to read as a kid. I wish they had opted for something more kid-friendly, because those books drove me away from reading and pushed me towards gaming.” [laughs]

Sweater by Karl Lagerfeld at The Collective

But it was never his childhood dream to become an actor: “Growing up, I wanted to become a singer; the dream was to perform in a sold-out arena with thousands of people cheering my name—I used to perform in my school and college. In fact, I used to sing covers and put them on social media. But I slowly realised that although I enjoyed doing it, I can’t make a living out of it. It’s not lucrative enough as a career option,” says the actor who has a degree in business from Mumbai’s Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies.  

“So, I thought of broadening my scope and signed up at a talent management agency who insisted that I go for acting auditions,” he says. . It took him three years after that to land The Archies. “My first audition for the film was in December of 2020 for the role of Archie Andrews,” quips the actor. Eventually, the eponymous character went to Agastya Nanda while he won hearts as Reggie Mantle “I was under the impression that it will be a character role and didn’t realise that it was going to be such a big ‘launch’,” he adds. But if The Archies hadn’t happened when it did, he would have pursued his MBA. 

If The Archies was the launch of a bunch of newcomers, in Jigra he is working with Alia Bhatt, a seasoned actor. Landing this movie was a very different process as well. . “Earlier I didn’t quite understand why I should go and meet directors and talk to them. I had actually asked Vasan sir. And he told me that when you meet an actor you get to know his/her vibe as a person and that at times helps in deciding if s/he would be able to pull off the character,” he says revealing the importance of ‘networking’ in Bollywood—something that most actors would conveniently deny.  

In Jigra, Vedang plays a rather hardcore and complex character. “It was challenging to play a prisoner and that too he is locked up in a different country—I have no idea how that experience is like, and it was scary and intimidating to approach it as an actor. There were some pretty hard-hitting scenes. Also, this is the first time I had to cry in front of the camera. But the most challenging bit was that I had to shave my head, multiple times, over the course of one year. More so, because the hair, the swirl, was a big part of playing Reggie, and I was the only guy on that set whose hair would take so much time to get done. And here for Jigra, there was nothing to be done hair and makeup wise once I landed at the set—I was wearing this one pair of shorts, a t-shirt, and chappals and I was ready to face the camera. It was nice, but I missed my hair,” he says. However, he considers himself as one of the luckiest humans walking the planet: “The Archies was a launch that I didn’t even dream of, and Jigra is even bigger,” he quips.

Jacket, shirt, trousers, jewellery; all by Hermès | Boots by Language

But for a one-film-old actor, getting into the skin of such a complex character was definitely not easy, and it wasn’t easy to get out of it either, Vedang reveals. “Alia would be in the scene, hit all the right notes with precision and get out of the character as soon as she hears ‘cut’. But I couldn’t, it is not easy for me to come in and out of character.” And it is definitely taking a toll on him already. “It did impact my mental health a bit. On the very first day, I was to shoot a rather emotionally intense scene, and I shut myself in my vanity, put the lights off, switched off my phone, and told people to just leave me alone—I sat there listening to my music. Now, as luck would have it, the shot was supposed to happen at 3pm but got delayed and we started rolling around 8 pm. So, I was in that self-imposed solitary confinement for about 8 long hours, and it really started impacting me. Even when the scenes were done, I couldn’t get out of that zone for 2/3 hours. I realised that it is not going to work like this, and after that I have decided not to put myself through such a thing… it is not worth it and I believe there are other ways to access that emotion, I just need to find which one works for me the best,” says the self-taught actor who had gone through extensive workshops for Jigra. 

Although he is reluctant to call himself a Method actor, “When doing a scene, I like to put myself in that headspace for 2/3 hours before facing the camera, and I take some time to get out of the character as wellI” he says. “I am not saying there can be no other way to do justice to a character and be truthful in a performance, but that’s the approach I have been taking, maybe it is also because of my inexperience. So, if I am playing a character with a limp, I will probably hit my leg and hurt myself to get that limp. It is stupid. But I don’t know any other way yet.”   

But is he ready to embrace the ‘celebrity’ life? Especially since these days Bollywood celebrities are often seen facing massive trolling on social media? “I can filter out irrational hate,” he says adding that although he feels the pressure of being on social media, as an actor, today it is crucial. “It is also a source of revenue, and it would be stupid of me to not be on it.” Although he handles his social media himself, he is cautious to not post anything offensive or triggering. As a GenZ, he was born in the age of social media and hence, better equipped to deal with it. In fact, even before he became an actor Vedang was posting videos of his cover songs on social media. But what about the Paparazzi? “I don’t deal with it too much. Anything that happens suddenly is bound to shock at first but eventually you get used to it,” he says.   

25 Questions With Vedang Raina

1. The most underrated contemporary Indie musician on your Spotify?  

Local Train—they are a cool indie rock band from India, and Tom Mish…I love his use of Jazz elements. 

2. Favourite football World Cup memory?  

This last one. To watch Messi in the World Cup was the most satisfying feeling ever, given the way the final was, especially after losing that 2014 final to Germany, which is my worst football WC memory. In fact, I was shooting for Archies then in Dahisar in Mumbai. My shoot got over in the evening and I rushed straight to a local movie theatre that was screening the final match live—and I cried, laughed, screamed, lost my voice. It had drama, emotions and everything. 

3. Things from the 2000s that you want to bring back? 

2000s were when I was 0 to 10 years old [laughs]. So, I hardly have that kind of attachment to things from that decade. But yes, from my early teens,I would love to bring back the Walkman. Although it was not the era of the Walkman, my cousin sister had one and I absolutely loved the idea of listening to music from a cassette and that too on the go. I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Then those Motorola flip phones. My first phone was a 1000-rupee slim Motorola phone, and you could just make calls with it. I was around 12 years then.I was the first person in my friend circle to get a phone. And that was because my parents used to totally freak out if I was untraceable even for 10 minutes. That phone just had my mom and my dad’s number. 

Suit, sweater; both by Hermès

4. One movie every man should watch and why? 

3 Idiots—it kind of encourages you to break out from the cage and follow your dreams and passions. 

5. One superhero you would trade a day of your life with? 
I want to say Batman because he is my favourite superhero, but I don’t want to go through the trauma that he did, even for a day. So, I would probably pick Tony Stark—he is a super chill dude. 
 

6. Things nobody knows about you? 

That I am a major movie buff. I not only watch all kinds of moviesfrom all over the world, but I also track the ones I am watching. I am part of online forums discussing movies. After watching a movie, I usually read up about it and go through the actors and director’s interviews. I also then try to watch all the films by the same director. 

That I am a huge Barcelona FC fan, even now after Messi has left. There are many who were fans of the club only because Messi was part of it, but I am a true-blue fan of the club.  

That I am majorly into gaming. I love FIFA and I am a lot into first-person shooter games like Call of Duty etc. I have a group of friends and we are into serious competitive gaming. I am pretty good in FIFA, I was in the Elite Division. During the Lockdown, that’s all I did, but haven’t gotten the chance to play much in the last few years. So, now my friends have gotten better than me. 

7. What kind of watches do you prefer? 

I have taken to watches recently and have been researching them a lot. There is no distinct preference yet, but I like a classic, automatic watch with a leather strap.  

I had a G-Shock while growing up; I used to wear it during my exams as it had an alarm. Later, around 2021 I got an Apple watch. And recently I have invested in a rather expensive one. 

I would love to own a Patek Philippe someday. I think watches are kind of an adult thing—you slowly build a collection once you start earning. It is an expensive hobby to have.   

8. The first song you learnt to play on the guitar?  

I remember it distinctly: It was the theme music of Karz…it’s\on one string and has five notes, so one of the easiest to learn. I was 11 then. Then I learnt the DDLJ theme and Smoke on the Water. These are the easy ones you usually start with. The first proper piece I learnt was Nothing Else Matters by Metallica—I found it very complicated in the beginning, but now it is one of my favourite pieces to play along with Eric Clapton’s Tears In Heaven. But I am not really a guitarist; I play it to aide my singing. 

9. The wildest DM that you remember? 

I recently did a campaign for an underwear brand and that unleashed quite a lot of ‘wild’ stuff on my DM. I don’t want to remember any part of it. [laughs] 

10. If you had the opportunity to be in a play, which four actors (dead or alive) would you want to be on the stage with? 

I would say Naseer saab [Naseeruddin Shah], Om Puri saab, Pankaj Kapur, and Irrfan Khan. But I don’t think I would be able to act in that case, I would just stand there and watch them. 

11. Dating pet peeves?  

Not giving me my space, checking my phone, and prying on me. 

12. Toughest thing about you as a partner? 

Sometimes I disconnect. Especially when I’m shooting, I am in my own world. It gets difficult to reach me when I am working. 

13. Ultimate three-course cheat meal? 

I love soft breads. So, for a starter, I would have some warm bread with butter. Then, a nice truffle pasta. And I love brownies with ice cream for dessert—maybe a sundae with hot chocolate and vanilla ice cream. 

14. What is your most favourite and least favourite part about your daily workout? 

My least favourite is doing legs. I hate it. And it is also the most tiring thing to do. I like doing push workouts—chest, shoulders, and triceps. I also hate cardio. 

15. Your dream concert lineup (living or dead)? 
Coldplay is my favourite band of all time. Then I always wanted to go to a Travis Scott concert; they are a vibe. And of course, Michael Jackson for that holistic experience. 
 

Polo & Sweater by Vivienne Westwood at The Collective | Jeans by United Colors of Benetton | Boots by Language

16. 3 games on your Xbox?  
Only PlayStation, never Xbox! FC 25, Call of Duty, and Elden Ring. 

17. The idea of a perfect solo trip?  

I have never done one but would love to. I would go somewhere that is away from civilization. I am not the New York kind of person; I am more into nature. Maybe Iceland. And see the Northern Lights. 

18. If you got to hang out with a sports person, who would that be and why? 

Messi. Favourite player of all time, favourite human being of all time. I am his biggest fan. I think he is the only person I would get starstruck by. 

19. First blockbuster movie you watched? 

The earliest memory I have of going to a theatre is Bunty Aur Babli (2005). We were living in Lucknow for a year, I was about 5 years old. I still love that movie.  

20. Go-to first date? 

I like the typical dinner date. I think it is a good way to get to know a person compared to watching a movie. 

21. One current trend that you will never follow? 

Skinny jeans. I just can’t! 

22. What are your views on situationships?  

It is when you are still getting to know a person; it is a phase of understanding each other. But it should eventually lead to a proper relationship. 

23. Essentials that you always carry with you on shoots? 

Sunscreen, water bottle, protein bars, earphones, and I carry my iPad to watch movies on lighter days of a shoot when you have to wait a lot on the set. Patience is the biggest virtue of an actor. [laughs] 

24. A movie you have rewatched the most number of times: 

Interstellar—I watched it in the theatres the first time when it came out. I was 14 and couldn’t understand a thing but I enjoyed it! But it is a perfect film according to me. 

25. Three movies you are eager to watch: 

Adam Driver’s Megalopolis, Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker: Folie à Deux, and Alia Bhatt’s Jigra! I hear there is also some newcomer dude in it [chuckles]

CREDITS:

Editor: Shivangi Lolayekar (@shivangil23)

Photographer: Saurabh Das (pixel.exposures)

Stylist & Creative Producer: Suprit Parulkar (@supritparulkar)

Production Manager: Karan Manjrekar (@karanmanjrekar_)

Hair: Alistan Fernandes (@alistan_fernandes)

Makeup: Vivek Singh (@makeupartists_viveks)

Assistant Stylists: Sejal Parulkar (@sejalparulkar) & Bhavya Vaity (@bhavss_s)

Dressman: Mithun Kumar Saw (@gauravraaj2)

PR: Communique Films PR (@CommuniqueFilmsPR)

Location: Creativeland Asia (@creativelandasia)