Pavail Gulati Says Shooting for Goodbye Helped Him Deal with a Personal Loss During Pandemic | Exclusive

Actor Pavail Gulati is gearing up for the release of the upcoming comedy drama, Goodbye. Touted to be a heartwarming journey of grief, love and self-discovery, the film stars Amitabh Bachchan, Rashmika Mandanna and Neena Gupta in the lead roles.

At the trailer launch of the film, Bachchan had stated that working on the Vikas Bahl directorial helped him celebrate the time he spent with his parents – late poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan and late social activist Teji Bachchan – and the importance of elders in his family. In an exclusive interaction with News18, Pavail shares that he experienced a similar emotion. He tells us, “This is a film that talks about death. Death is something we don’t really speak to anyone about. We never ask our parents, ‘When and how do you want to go?’ But it’s inevitable."

He reveals that Goodbye is a special film for him as it not only marks his reunion with Big B eight years after the television show, Yudh (2014), but it also proved to be ‘a cathartic experience’ for him as he experienced a personal loss while filming.

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“While we were shooting for the film during the pandemic, we were going through a really tough time. Everyone was losing someone or the other. So, we had a heavy-heart because we all knew people in our circle who were sick. I had a personal loss at that time. It was a terrible situation and this film helped me deal with the harsh reality and let go and make a memory out of a tragedy. I’m a very shy person. I don’t let out my feelings so fast. But this film allowed me to channel my emotions and talk about it. My character and I were going through the same things. Playing this part was truly liberating," the 35-year-old elaborates.

While Goodbye has grabbed the attention of many for its theme and the song Jaikal Mahakal, there are many on social media who are comparing it to Bachchan and Deepika Padukone starrer Piku (2015), which explored the upheavals in a relationship shared by a daughter and her aging father.

Reacting to it, Gulati opines, “Piku was a lovely film. Shoojit (Sircar) da is a really amazing director. I don’t mind the comparison at all. But the thing is people are comparing them because they haven’t seen Goodbye yet. It isn’t anything like Piku. Goodbye is a film about an entire family. It will move you and make you laugh and cry."

In August this year, the Ghost Stories (2020) actor had a release with filmmaker Anurag Kashyap’s Dobaaraa starring his Thappad (2020) co-star Taapsee Pannu. While the film generated a generous buzz after opening the London Indian Film Festival 2022, it had a rather underwhelming performance at the domestic box office.

Talking about it, an unfazed Gulati says, “Box office hasn’t caught up to me yet. Since it’s just the beginning of my career, it isn’t something that I think about. I need to become a certain saleable star to actually worry about it. Probably my next three releases will create that pressure point. But considering how the movies were doing at that time, I think Dobaaraa did pretty well."

The actor, who will next be seen in filmmaker Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari’s web series Faadu, further adds, “It was made on a very small budget. My producer told me that they were happy with its outcome. Every film has its own journey. I’m looking forward for it to premiere on Netflix so that more people can enjoy it. Since they have started watching Hindi movies a little bit more, I hope they’ll react to it positively."

Two years ago, Gulati shot to overnight fame with Thapapd and is still widely known as ‘the Thappad actor’. Quiz him if it bothers him and he says, “It was slightly irritating earlier but Thappad ke baad kuch release bhi toh nahi hua na (laughs). The past two years were all about Covid-19, so it’s obvious that I’ll be known like that. I understand the plight of the audience."

He, however, holds the Anubhav Sinha directorial very close to his heart. “That film has given me a lot. I owe my career to it. But I hope that I’m known for my other films and eventually as Pavail Gulati. I need to build a little more credibility. I’m thankful that I’ve some nice projects in the pipeline and I’m working with some lovely directors," Gulati remarks.

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