Tahir Raj Bhasin says ‘it’s validating’ that Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein got greenlit for season 3
Tahir Raj Bhasin opens up on Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein getting renewed for season 3, completing 10 years in the industry and exploring leading space on OTT
Actor Tahir Raj Bhasin is in a ‘celebration mode’ due to the love that Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein season 2 has received, and that excitement got tripled as the show has been renewed for a season 3. “It's in a record time that the platform has announced that we're going to be a season 3. Normally they take a minimum of 2-3 months. It's incredibly validating to know that we're going to a season 3,” he says.
Tahir Raj Bhasin insists that he is glad to have overcome the ‘season 2 curse’: “Having a sequel to a successful first season is always a little bit stressful because there are always going to be comparisons with the first season. There is also a season 2 curse, which says that season 2 rarely matches up to the expectations of the audience and critics alike. We are on cloud nine, because we smashed that myth.”
With this success coinciding with his 10 years in the industry, the actor says, “I started off my career with Mardaani (2014) where I was playing the antagonist, chased by a woman cop. I was hit by a lot of girls in the climax. I feel like this is good karma, because I've now come to a romantic triangle. Transitioning to a romantic here and doing something that is so pulpy and dramatic and an ode to 90s Bollywood, it was just the ideal way to celebrate the milestone.”
In this decade, Tahir has played varied roles in projects like Chhichhore (2019), 83 (2021) and Looop Lapeta (2022). Mention them and he says, “All of my characters have a never give up attitude, and I think that is what makes them relatable. There's something flawed, but charming about these characters.”
There was almost a three-year gap between the first two seasons of Yeh Kaali Kaali Ankhein. Ask him if he ever wondered if the audience of the show would have lost connect due to the long gap and he says, “As an audience, if I have liked something, I will go back to see what happens next, no matter how much time passes. Also, there was curiosity to see how it would pan out for Vikrant (his character) as he had pushed himself into a corner. It’s such a mess and there is this voyeuristic curiosity to see how he would get out of it.”
While he has had some hit outings on the big screen, OTT has given Tahir more space to explore the leading space. Ask for his take on it and he says, “What OTT has offered me is the genres I wasn’t getting to do before. It has given me the time to play out a character and explore the story. It’s still very early days for OTT, and I feel in the longer run, the opportunity to be a leading man will come in both cinema and OTT.”
