Wajih was my most challenging role as an actor: Bilal Abbas Khan

In a rather short span of time, Bilal Abbas Khan has managed to grab the audience's attention with his power-packed performances. Let it be Cheekh's vile Wajih or O Rangreza's gullible Qasim, the actor's range has been lauded by viewers and critics alike. His latest offering, Pyaar Ke Sadqay, was also well-received and Khan now has two web-series in the pipeline with the Indian streaming platform, ZEE5.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, the actor opened up about career choices, his most challenging role and upcoming projects.

The Express Tribune (ET): It’s been quite a journey for you since you debuted in Saya-e-Deewar Bhi Nahi. Your first prominent role in Dumpukht and the most recent one in Pyaar Ke Sadqay. How do you feel about your journey so far?

Bilal Abbas Khan (BA): If you put it like that, it does seem like quite a journey, but I have to say that I’ve felt blessed and grateful every step of the way. It’s my good fortune that I got the right kind of opportunities, met the right kind of people, and reached where I am today. I am thankful to Allah, who has been so kind as to have blessed me with some amazing opportunities, and I got a chance to really put myself out there through my craft.

ET: The last time we spoke, you shared that you would love to do a character similar to Ranveer Singh’s in Padmaavat. A dark, gritty role. Cheekh gave you a chance to do that. How well do you think that was received?

BA: For me, the motivation behind doing any character is that it should help me grow as an actor, widen my range, and truly test my potential. In that account, playing Wajih really ticked all the boxes. The script, the co-stars, the director - everything prompted me to take up that role. I did have some reservations - as negative characters can backfire too, and that was still early on in my career. So I took a leap of faith, and I had the margin to do it my way, so I owned Wajih. I didn’t want Wajih to be the typical villain - and I think with the dark humor, we really managed to take everyone by surprise. Every part of Wajih’s journey evoked a different emotion in the audience, and for me, as a performer that was the biggest success, I walked out with from that role.

ET: You have done roles from O Rangreza’s Qasim to Pyaar Ke Sadqay’s Abdullah. That’s quite a range of performances. Is it just luck or do you look for such diverse roles?

BA: I love trying any role as long as the script is good and I know I can do justice to the character, I don’t want to be typecast as a typical ‘good’ or ‘bad’ guy. I like to challenge myself with the characters I play that also help me expand my range and experiment. I think without experimenting, I won’t be able to grow, and I don’t want to be stuck in the same loop of characters and performances. Character’s like Abdullah are tough, not generally accept, yet offer a margin to me as an actor to showcase my work.

ET: Which of your characters was the hardest to play?

BA: Every character has its own challenges, but so far, ‘Wajih’ has been the one that has tested me the most as an actor. He wasn’t your typical villain, there was a depth to his character that had to be portrayed, and it was challenging to do justice to that. Also, since negative characters don’t suit my look, making it look credible was another challenge in itself.  

ET: Future projects! What do you have in the pipeline?

BA: For now, I am shooting for Dunk, where I am working with my Cheekh director Badar Mehmood again. Other than that, two of my web series will be on-air on ZEE5 Global soon. The first one is Mehreen Jabbar’s Ek Jhooti Love Story, which is a light comedy on finding love in a digitised world. While the second one, Abdullahpur Ka Devdas, is a romantic drama written by Shahid Dogar and directed by Anjum Shehzad, where my co-stars are Anoushay Abbasi and Sarah Khan.

Have something to add to the story? Share it in the comments below.