Tushar Pandey: We would sleep in KMC audi

Delhi has been more than just a home town for actor Tushar Pandey. The 29-year-old is popular for roles such as in the films Chhichhore (2019) and Hum Chaar (2019). When recently in the Capital, he didn’t miss the chance to pick a e-bike to make a quick trip to his alma mater Kirori Mal College (KMC); after eight long years! Crediting Delhi University and Delhi for helping him find his profession as an actor, he reminisces his memorable time spent relishing North Campus’ mouth-watering food options and sleepovers at KMC’s auditorium. And can’t help but that the three dedicated years he spent at National School of Drama (NSD) hostel, which come rushing back as precious memories to him now.

‘DTC buses made the city seem small’

Pandey recalls how he used to take bus from his home in Rohini to North Campus, daily. “Delhi at that time, felt like a small place because you could catch a DTC bus and go anywhere! So, life was about jumping onto the buses and not worrying. A lot of the time, we’d not come home and stay back in the auditorium or at some friend’s place who lived at Kingsway Camp or some place. The North Campus area is so familiar, because when I came back after such a long time, it reminded me of many different places and things,” says Pandey, who was part of KMC’s theatre society The Players. Soon he bumped into his “favourite” professor, and a mushy hug later, Pandey couldn’t help gushing: “He is my mentor. Keval Arora sir, an actor himself, is the reason that anyone who’s been part of The Players, during my time or before, got the idea and meaning of theatre. It’s him who ingrained this feeling of community in theatre, understanding the script and making us who we are!”

Jumping over wall for C-Bats @K-Nags

“One of my greatest memories of Kamla Nagar market is the chhole bhature and lassi that’s available there. Behind KMC, we had a small gate that opened directly to the market, but most of the time it used to be shut. I still remember how we’d jump over the wall and managed to go and grab a quick bite there,” he reminisces with a smile, about those #CampusKeDin when most of his days were spent rehearsing at KMC’s auditorium.

“The only breaks were those 15-20 minutes between rehearsals. Jaise normal colleges mein classes ke beech break time hota hai, our reference for break time for all three years was between the rehearsals. The moment we entered the college, we used to first report in the auditorium. And if we had to go to a class, we’d then disperse from there. For us, more than the canteen, auditorium was a place to hang out. We’d even sleep in KMC audi sometimes. Rehearsal der tak chali aur 12-1am baj gaye, so instead of coming back at 8am the next day, we’d just sleep there,” says Pandey.

Fest hopping for theatre

DU aaye aur fest mein nahi gaye, toh kya DU aaye, right? But KMC fest did not make any memories for Pandey, who was totally occupied in theatre. “College theatre was all about making plays and going to all the theatre festivals. We’d go everywhere from Lady Shri Ram College and Hindu College to BITS Pilani and IIT Bombay. And there we’d meet all these people from different colleges,” he says.

Expressing gratitude to these years spent in theatre that build his base in professional acting, Pandey adds: “When I was in college, I didn’t know I wanted to be an actor. While at Kirori Mal, I was still finding out what I liked. Later, it was NSD that institutionalised the idea that this is what I’d do in my life.”

‘NSD was my IIT’

“NSD was the first professional place from where, in the whole country, only 20 people get selected. That gives you a big understanding of where you’re heading. It’s from there that acting became my career. And NSD training is very hectic, so you have to live there in the hostel. I was staying in Mandi House for three years, and at that time went to Connaught Place less than 10 times because everything is available within NSD campus itself. It’s like how an engineer would train at IIT,” quips Pandey.

“Delhi gave me a step-by-step understanding of what I want to do, and that’s why even now when I come back home, I have a very different section of memories if I go to Connaught Place or Mandi House or college or home,” he signs off.

Author tweets @siddhijainn

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