Saqib Saleem says he was depressed after people made fun of his acting in Race 3

Actor Saqib Saleem, geared up for web show Rangbaaz after the failure of multi-starrer film Race 3, says though he received his first negative review for the film, it offered him wide exposure. “I got my first ever negative review and criticism after the release of Race 3. Before that, in all my films, whether it was Bombay Talkies or Mujhse Fraaandship Karoge, people always said that I am a good actor. This was the first time when people made fun of my acting. I was depressed for quite some time,” Saqib told IANS here.

“Then I came across Anupama Chopra’s review where she said: ‘The usually reliable Saqib Saleem is reduced to hamming and adding ‘bro’ after every dialogue’. The words ‘usually reliable’ somehow gave me a boost that at least people count me as a reliable actor and I went wrong with one film,” he added.

He said he slowly gathered confidence from there. Directed by Remo D’Souza, Race 3 released on Diwali. It features Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor and Bobby Deol among others.

Saqib said: “I had a great experience working in the film. I had unparalleled experience when I shared screen space with some of the iconic actors. No one makes a film with an intention to make a bad film, but Race 3 had a different journey. Though many people troll and criticise the film, we cannot deny the fact that it reached out to the small town audience.”

“The film did not give me creative satisfaction like that of Bombay Talkies but I am learning a new thing with every film.” As the actor finished shooting of Rangbaaz and the trailer is getting a positive response, Saqib said: “I am eagerly waiting for people’s reaction on the show. I really put a lot of hard work on this because after a long time I got a chance to go deeper to a meaty character like Shiv Prakash Shukla.”

Rangbaaz, which also features Tigmanshu Dhulia and Aahana Kumra among others, will start streaming from December 22.

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