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(Written by Shanaya Dsa)

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Mukul Chadda has no interest in filling Steve Carrells shoes. In fact, hed never watched an episode of The Office (US), a sitcom featuring Carrell and an ensemble cast. The 56-year-old Golden Globe-winning actor plays Michael Scott, a regional manager in charge of a paper distribution company, and a handful of employees whose shenanigans at the workplace make for comedy gold. “But when I found out about the role, I auditioned for it. It was a long process and from the very beginning, I was in love with the part,” says Chadda. Sitting in the living room of his Bandra apartment, Chadda, 45, looks a little tired — the afternoon has been packed with interviews, but he gamely answers every question. After all, the Indian remake of The Office, the 10th international remake of the American show, is arguably the most commercial project of his career.

In The Office (India), Chadda plays Jagdeep Chaddha, the manager of Wilkins Chawla, a Delhi-based paper company. “If I had to describe Jagdeep, Id say that hes naive, almost child-like, with an absurd personality that creates a lag between the Freudian id and super-ego. Normally, the id and super-ego work simultaneously, but in Jagdeeps case, the id works separately, and super-ego only begins to strike after a noticeable lag. This makes his character unpredictable,” he says.

A remake of a cult show can be quite a risk — what with The Offices dry and absurd humour and pitch-perfect performances — but Chadda says the upcoming show has not made any attempt to cater to an Indian audience. “I dont think theres been any attempt to change the flavour of the jokes — they remain the same — as does the mockumentary style, deadpan humour and long pauses,” he says.

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Having previously worked with Gopal Datt, who plays TP Mishra (the Indian version of Dwight Schrute) and a few other cast members, Chadda was easily able to pick up on the improvisations during the scenes. “I love Gopals role. If I hadnt been picked for Jagdeep, I would have definitely tried for his,” he says. In order to get the best out of the takes, the shows creators, Debbie Rao, Vivek “Bumpy” Bhushan and Rohan Sippy, shot multiple takes. “After the good take, there was the fun take, where everyone got to do what they wanted. What would invariably happen is that something else would occur and then we would push that line further and end up doing another 10 takes to get the best out of each scene. Sometimes, they wouldnt call cut, Read More – Source