'When you are someone's kid, you get easier access to the industry.'
'People will meet you, maybe even give you a first opportunity out of goodwill.'
'But at the end of the day, it's business.'
OTT actor Tanuj Virwani, last seen in Rana Naidu, lives in a sprawling penthouse in Worli.
Son of yesteryear actor Rati Agnihotri, Tanuj remains grounded and friendly, giving Rediff's Patcy N and Hitesh Harisinghani a tour of his home, and discussing his life and career.
"I have never used my mom's name. Since a young age, I've tried to be financially independent. Now, at 38, I want to contribute towards the home," he says.
Since when have you been living in this beautiful home?
The land this building stands on has a deep significance to our family. My dadaji was in the real estate business. He was in the midst of constructing a building which looked similar to the Nehru Planetarium but it was demolished.
My father took over and built it in its current form.
I have been living here since 2007; I convinced my parents to let me stay here alone.
I was giving my college exams then, and I barely scraped through because we were just partying.
Whenever I have a release, I have a screening here with the cast and crew.
But now, I'm married with a child, so not many parties.
My mom would say this used to be a frat house and after the birth of my daughter Navya, it's turned into a home.
Watch: A tour of Tanuj Viwani's home. Don't miss his sneaker collection!
What is your favourite corner in the house?
There are quite a few, actually. There's one on the terrace.
I don't have a manager; I usually crack my own deals, be it for film, for shows or anything.
There is this one spot, whatever I sign or close a deal, it usually goes well. I call that my lucky spot.
Inside Edge, Code M, Splitvilla happened there. I got the news of me doing my first Dharma film, Yodha, there.
I also spent a lot of time there during the lockdown.
Which is your mother's favourite area of the house?
She prays a lot.
My aunt lives in Poland, so there's a lot of Christian influence, a lot of Jesus and Mother Mary statues.
We are Sai Baba bhakts so there is a life-size Sai Baba.
It's a place of Zen.
When I enter her living quarters, I have to remove my footwear.
During the pandemic, my mom was stuck in Poland because my aunt was making some changes in her restaurant.
My mom could not return because her dog was not allowed to fly back.
I was not married then.
It was like a bachelor's pad then, just my father and me. Even the staff were all men.
Now, there's an overwhelming female presence -- my mom, my wife Tanya, my daughter, her nanny...
Did you ever get any career privileges because your mother was an actress?
No, I got bullied because of that.
In school, the kids were very mean.
I was an introvert and had confidence issues.
My mom was not actively working at that time. She made her comeback when I was 16, in Standard 10.
There was no social media back then.
I knew my mom was something big and would feel it more when we would travel abroad, where people would come for autographs.
I'd seen very few films of hers, only when they would come on cable TV.
They didn't allow me to watch films like Ek Duje Ke Liye because she dies at the end, and that would really upset me.
When she made a comeback, I would be allowed to go on the sets sometimes.
When she would promote them, she would be on news channels. That's when I would be like, 'Oh my God, she's big.'
A lot of people think that a famous mom is a gold card but it's nothing like that.
Which films sets did you visit?
I have been on the sets of Yaadein. They were shooting in Khandala.
I remember Subhash Ghai would come to our room after pack up and he wanted to understand my take. He wanted to know what the youth felt because he was in tune with the times.
In the film, my mom's character is dead but Jackie Shroff's character keeps seeing her.
Just before that, Mohabatein had come out and he was concerned about the similarities.
I told him that it was the same role as Mohabatein.
Later, when we went for the film screening, my mom's role was much shorter than we anticipated.
She was pretty bummed out about it.
How much did you have to struggle in your career?
Everyone struggles.
I get a lot of inspiration from Shah Rukh Khan. He was struggling up until two years back. He's probably the biggest star we have in our country and for over 30 years.
When you are someone's kid, you get easier access to the industry.
People will meet you, maybe even give you a first opportunity out of goodwill.
But at the end of the day, it's business.
It's a film industry.
If the producers and directors think you have what it takes and the audience keeps coming back for more, you'll get work.
Otherwise, you'll just be sitting at home.
I don't let it get me down.
There are days where the phone is not ringing and others when it's ringing excessively.
How has fatherhood changed you?
My entire day revolves around what time Navya wakes up.
She has started going to play school.
The way you start viewing the world, situations and people, everything changes.
I always tell everyone that I was more ready to be a dad than I was a husband.
It's beautiful watching her milestones.
Inside Edge was the most popular show you did. But somehow, the other shows have not been as popular. Being in the industry for almost 10 years now, does it make you insecure that things are not working out?
When I started my career, I only wanted to be a film actor.
But as time went by and I saw both failure and success, you have to become the Jack of all trades.
You have to be open to all possibilities. That's how OTT happened, character roles in movies happened, hosting reality television like Splitsvilla happened.
Weirdly for me, the easiest phase of my career was during the pandemic.
I was bombarded with work during that phase.
In 2021, I had six releases.
Some actors were not comfortable working in those times, so the roles came to me.
How expensive is it to maintain this lifestyle?
A lot of people have this misconception that because his parents are well off -- his mom was a star and his dad is in real estate -- it's easy.
Yes, the family has wealth, but I also pride myself in being self-made.
I have never used my mom's name.
I don't use her surname.
Since a young age, I've tried to be financially independent. Now, at 38, I want to contribute towards the home.
When I joined the industry, there was just films and television.
Now, you've got films, television, OTT, reality shows, social media, events, collaborations, there are many more avenues.
At the same time, you don't want to be desperate and overexpose yourself.
How do rumours affect you?
I used to get affected at the start of my career.
It's not just about link-ups. My parents were going through some issues in their marriage and people put so much mirchi in it. They presented it in a bad way and it affects you.
Your films are not doing well, people are writing negative stuff about your family, it's not a good feeling.
But I'm happy that happened early on because it gave me that mental muscle.
It doesn't make it your reality unless you let it.
