Aftab Shivdasani calls box office the key to success: It is the ultimate barometer
Speaking exclusively to India Today, Aftab Shivdasani scoffed at suggestions of a “comeback” as he had never left the industry. He admits to waiting patiently for meaningful films and emphasizes that box office success is the ultimate barometer and not just OTT viewership.
Aftab Shivdasani, who was recently seen fun 4Ridicules the idea of a return – because, he says, he never left. For the actor, who has been a part of Hindi cinema for almost 26 years and around 64-65 films, the phrase “come back” has never meant anything.
Speaking exclusively to India Today, Aftab says, “I never understood what it meant to ‘come back’ because I never went anywhere. I was right here, right here, right under everyone’s nose. Sometimes, you don’t always get the work you want. An actor always has a list of aspirations and boxes to tick. But sometimes everything happens at the right time, you just have to be patient.”
He acknowledges that patience is a choice that some people choose and others do not. The actor further added, “Some of us wait, some don’t. Some take hasty decisions, some decide to stay there and wait – and that’s what I did. I stayed there, waited and then, thankfully by the grace of God, I have some interesting films, and hopefully we can try and raise the bar.”
When the actor was asked how he views criticism, he said, “I don’t take compliments or criticism seriously. I don’t read anything. It’s just because it distracts me. It distracts me from focusing on what I should really be focusing on. I’ve always worked for my audience. I’ve never worked for anything else.”
Despite a long career, he insists that the journey feels refreshing. “It’s been 26 years and about 64, 65 films have been made, but I feel like my work hasn’t started yet. I feel like this is the first time I’m giving interviews. I feel like this is my first day. Every moment is a new moment. Every day is a new day. There’s no way we can repeat it tomorrow. So today will be the only day you have. For me, I’m just living for the present.”
Aftab, who was recently seen in Masti 4, talks about how comedy has evolved over the years: “Comedy is the hardest genre to attempt. You have housefull, chaos And blast Working because that’s a type of comedy. then you have funAce of the World is Working, which is an adult comedy. Then you have situational comedies, which are also working. There are many factors involved in making a successful comedy film: the script, the performances, and the timing. And then you have to ask – are we just laughing on set or will people actually laugh while watching the movie? It is a complete journey. You try your best and hope that people will laugh, and not just those around you. Our goal is always the same: to make the audience laugh in the theater, not just at the monitor.”
On the ongoing debate about OTT versus theatrical success, Aftab is pragmatic. “You always do (think about box office numbers) because at the end of the day, the yardstick to measure success is the box office. Whether it’s OTT or not, that can’t change,” he says.
Although actors may take creative satisfaction from certain films, he warned that talent may go to waste if a film fails commercially. “This has happened to me many times in my career,” insists Aftab.
He explains the difference between theatrical success and OTT viewership. “If a film doesn’t do well in theatres, but does well on OTT – there is a debate going on at the moment as to how to measure success. Only the OTT platform tells you how many times it has been watched. In fact, there is no way, one can go back and check unless there are ways that I am not aware of. OTT and cinema, they go together, but they are still two different mediums of projecting,” actor Prakash said. Poured.
Aftab says he has worked mostly in cinema – “except for two web shows that I have done in my career, but I have mostly done films that release in theatres” – so box office is my major measure. Still, he acknowledges the commercial power of OTT: “If you do a show that has become hugely successful on OTT, you will get more offers on OTT, and they will pay you a lot more money on OTT. But that doesn’t mean you are a big star in cinema.”
While many actors argue that OTT offers creative freedom, Aftab sees the primary difference as format and duration rather than artistic freedom. He says, “OTT gives you more time to unfold because it’s a few episodes. In a film, you have to cram and squeeze everything into two hours. OTT, you can expand and slowly open each card.”
beyond length, fun 4 The actor believes that acting remains the same across all mediums. He further added, “Unless you are doing something completely gory or bold which the censor board would reject for cinema, I don’t think there is much difference. OTT also has some guidelines now. For an actor, they both are mediums of expression – I will not perform better in one and not perform better in the other.”
Aftab will be seen next time welcome to the jungle And fault, Which is going to be released in 2026.