Tahir Raj Bhasin and Anjumm Shharma, who are part of upcoming period drama Sultan Of Delhi, talk about their co-stars and the infectious energy on sets

Sheetal

Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai director Milan Luthria gears up for his OTT debut with crime thriller series Sultan Of Delhi, starring Tahir Raj Bhasin and Anjumm Shharma in the lead roles. The two sound upbeat about the series being a human story, quite contrary to what the trailer reveals. We find out more…

The screenplay is adapted from author Arnab Ray’s book Sultan Of Delhi: Ascension. As the name suggests, it has a backdrop of Delhi from the 1960s. So, did hailing from Delhi help Tahir Raj Bhasin, who essays the character of Arjun Bhatia? “Yes. Definitely it did help. It added a layer of authenticity to the part. Having said that, it is based in the 60’s, the time when I was not around! But I read about the history of the city, the culture that existed post-Independence and that really helped. I know the things that Delhi people like.”

The effort was to make my character as human as possible. So, I think the emotional graph of Bangali has come out really well. His relationship with Tahir and Mouni is relatable. Credit to the director for having achieved this feat.

– Anjumm Sharrma

Director Milan isn’t the only one debuting with this project, apparently it happens to be actress Mouni Roy’s digital debut as well. This series also stars Neha Sharma, Anupriya Goenka, Harleen Sethi and Mehreen Pirzada.

I always love shooting in Punjab for two simple reasons — the air over there is fresh and the food is always the best. We went to the Golden Temple before starting the shoot.

— Tahir Raj Bhasin

On his part, Anjumm shares, “Well, there are plenty of impactful dialogues. But there is one line which I think I liked and audience will love too — main to sirf Johnny Walker ko jaanta hoon. Talking of women power on sets, he adds, “Women have a pivotal part in the series. I mainly worked with Mouni Roy. She is very sweet and used to make the atmosphere very light. She is beautiful and very graceful.”

Mind and heart

About Anjumm and Tahir’s chemistry in the series, the latter elaborates, “In the journey of Arjun Bhatia (Tahir’s character), he meets a number of people who take him in different directions. But the most influential is the way his journey is impacted by Bangali’s (Anjumm) entry. If Arjun is the mind of the operation, Bangali is the impulse and the heart. Together they make an interesting pair.”

For authentic locations, they had to visit different places. Tahir adds, “We went to Patiala, Amritsar and smaller towns of Gujarat. It was a challenge because if you had to reach the sets at 7 am, you had to wake up at four! But when you see the results on screen, you feel satisfied.” The series also stars veteran actor Vinay Pathak and both of them had a great time sharing screen space with him. Tahir says, “Vinay sir has great energy that he brings to the sets. He has a lovely personality.”