Feel fortunate I can relate to a wide spectrum of people: Adarsh Gourav

Moving from a small town to a mega city like Mumbai was challenging but Adarsh Gourav believes it honed him as an actor by giving him a chance to connect with people from different walks of life.

The Jamshedpur-born actor made his acting debut as a child star in My Name is Khan and went on to feature in Sridevi-starrer Mom before finding international fame with his lead role in The White Tiger.

He currently stars in Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, a story of three friends navigating life and romance in the age of social media.

“I had a fairly simple life. Then I was overnight forced to move to Mumbai, which was never planned. I had to adapt to a completely new city, to take in its culture, to take its way of life. I feel that it gave me a wide perspective of life in general, like what it is to come from a small town and experience big city life,” Gourav told PTI in an interview.

The actor, who has also starred in TVF’s teen comedy series, Hostel Daze, and Netflix show Guns and Gulaabs, looks back at his journey from small-town India to a big city to international territories with fondness.

"I feel fortunate to meet people from different walks of life and I feel I’m naturally an empathetic person. So, I can relate to a wide spectrum of people. Like, if I’m playing an Indian-American in Alien, or playing Balram in A White Tiger, or Neil Pereira from Bandra in Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, they are all different from me but I can relate to all of these characters. It doesn’t feel like an impossibility,” he said.

Also starring Ananya Panday and Siddhant Chaturvedi, Kho Gaye Hum Kahan is streaming on Netflix.

Gourav's next project is the Alien prequel series, which is produced by veteran Hollywood filmmaker Ridley Scott. The Indian actor stars alongside Sydney Chandler, Kit Young, Alex Lawther, Samuel Blenkin, and Essie Davis.

"I’m going to start filming in January. I’m going to be in Bangkok for six months. It’s an exciting project, it's sci-fi. I feel very fortunate (to get good roles over there),” he added.

In India, Gourav will be seen in Reema Kagti's comedy-drama Superman of Malegaon, which sheds light on the underrated world of Bollywood spoofs.