According to the actor, who made his Hindi cinema debut with Vidya Balan-starrer “Kahaani”, “Pari” IN 2018 marked the beginning of the second phase of his career in the industry and it has been more fruitful.

“After ‘Kahaani’, a lot of people thought that I would move to Mumbai and start working there, which I didn’t do. I had no plans of doing that. But I did a couple of Hindi films but they were mostly forgettable ones.

"Later, with ‘Pari’ slowly, the cycle of doing meaningful work in Hindi started. From 2018 onwards my second stint started and from 2020, the frequency and intensity has been a lot more,” Chatterjee told PTI in an interview.

The actor, who was most recently seen in “Bulbbul”, “Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi”, “Kaun Pravi Tambe?” and Netflix show “Aranyak” to name a few, said the aim is to find interesting roles, irrespective of their length.

“The opening up of OTT has helped me find sensible work in Hindi. In Bengal, the situation is different as I have been the leading man in films for quite a few years. In Hindi, I don’t suffer from false ideas as such. I make sure my part is remembered. If that happens with a lead character, great or if it’s one of the important characters, which is contributing to the narrative, then (also) I am happy,” Chatterjee added.

Chatterjee said it is gratifying to be loved by people outside of his hometown.

“It is very endearing and encouraging for any artist to find a bigger audience. I feel encouraged and enthusiastic when I see this happening,” he said.

The actor will next be seen in Hindi film “Notary”, a social comedy, and “Walker House”, a supernatural thriller. He is also part Prime Video’s “Mumbai Diaries 2” and Sony LIV’s “Jehanabad- Of Love & War”, set to premiere on February 3. Sudhir Mishra serves as the showrunner.

“Notary”, which is backed by Shabbir Boxwala of “Shershaah” fame, will see him in the lead role.

Chatterjee said OTT has given an opportunity to actors like him to discover stories that not only align with his sensibilities but are mainstream yet realistic.

“People are exploring subjects (on OTT) that nobody would think of making on the big screen. OTT has opened up avenues for actors like me or a host of other people who have a certain sensibility and want to do work that matches their sensibility. People like us want to do work that is mainstream and has some meat in it, good subject and realistic writing. OTT has made space for all of it,” the 42-year-old actor said.

“Jehanabad” is set in the backdrop of a true event, in which hundreds of inmates escaped from Jehanabad jail after a Naxalites attack in November 2005.

“The moment I heard this (story), I thought I would do this because this is a chapter of history that needs to be told and from both the sides: the lens of the government, administration and the lens of the people, who took up arms as they felt there was tremendous injustice done to their people,” he added.

Chatterjee said his knowledge and understanding about the jail break incident helped him understand the show and his character better.

Speaking of his character, Deepak Kumar, a commander of the Naxals, the actor said he is charismatic, resilient, and a cool guy.

He likened the character’s quality with that of Lord Krishna.

“For me, he is as wise as Lord Krishna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra... He thinks he is the messiah of the lower caste. He is fighting for a community and they believe violence and arms struggle is the only way to put an end to injustice. I do not subscribe to the ways in which he wants to bring about change but those are his ways,” he added.

Created and written by Rajeev Barnwal, “Jehanabad – Of Love & War” is directed by Rajeev Barnwal and co-directed by Satyanshu Singh.

It also features Ritwik Bhowmik, Harshita Gaur and others.