World Theatre Day! Bharat Jadhav let go of Akshay Kumar’s OMG: Oh My God for theatre: Would never leave it for any movie

Actor Bharat Jadhav is a name to reckon with in Marathi showbiz, however, having done “over 13,000 shows”, his roots are still connected to theatre. “Theatre means a lot to me. I started my career with it and theatre ne mujhe sab kuch diya hai,” the actor states.

Jadhav’s theatre journey started in 1993, under the guidance of folk artist Shahir Sable and he has done some iconic Marathi plays like All the Best and Sahi Re Sahi. While the former has completed around 4000 shows to date, for the latter, Jadhav says, he holds a record for having done “567 house full shows in 365 days”.

On World Theatre Day, the actor credits the medium as the reason behind his success. “I enjoy theatre and I get more satisfaction here. The day I joined theatre I knew I would never leave it. No matter how many films or TV, I do, I will never leave theatre. I still do plays and I’ve never given taken a break,” Jadhav shares. He also goes on to reveal that he had to let go of the Akshay Kumar-starrer OMG: Oh My God! (2012), due to his commitment to theatre. “I was offered Mahadev’s role. We were supposed to start shooting in December, but after multiple delays, I was asked for dates in April. Now, April is the busy season for theatre. So, I left the movie as I had to let it go,” he recalls, adding that he even aligned the dates of his short film, Comfort Naatyanch, as per his theatre schedule.

While many actors crave the fame that showbiz brings, Jadhav finds comfort in the humility of theatre. “Paisa utna nahi milta jitna films mein hain, but theatre is where I get my creative satisfaction. I have even offered tea to others when I was doing theatre. Even today, since I have my own production house, there are days when some technicians are missing and I do the off-stage work, like taking care of the lights. Theatre is all about learning. It teaches you to be selfless and keeps you down to earth. Today, I can perform in front of anyone and anywhere because of my experience of theatre,” he elaborates.

Jadhav’s fondest memory of being on stage is when he once sneezed in an ongoing play. “I was in my character and I sneezed. Without realising, I got out of my character and said ‘I’m sorry’ to my co-star. I still laugh about it,” he signs off.