Mohit Raina on his Success in Television and OTT

Mohit Raina needs no introduction, this Jammu born actor started his journey on television with shows like Chehra, Ganga Kii Dheej, Bandini and rose to fame with ‘Devon Ka Dev-Mahadev’. His persona and performance in the show made him one of the most popular actors on small screen. Mohit has also acted in Mumbai Diaries, Bhaukaal, Kaafir and URI-A Surgical Strike.

Currently seen as ASI Avinash Kamat in Neeraj Pandey’s, The Freelancer on Disney Hotstar, Mohit shares the reason behind taking this role. He says, “The most important reason for me was Neeraj Pandey. He wanted me to play this role, and I became Avinash Kamat. The other technicalities were secondary. The way ‘The Friday Storytellers’ has been making shows on OTT is phenomenal.”

Speaking about the revolution of OTT space in India, Mohit says, “It is a revolutionary phase. Entertainment is in your mobile now. It’s a great boom right from actors to writers to all the technicians.

People who are talented, now have so many platforms to showcase their talent. So many stories/scripts which were locked inside have seen the light after OTT platforms came. The other day I met a flower seller who was actually watching one of my web-series on his mobile. That amazed me. Entertainment is available in every corner of the globe.”

From Mr India Grasim to The Freelancer, the journey has been long for Mohit. On this he says, “I remember when I revealed about my plan of going to Mumbai, there was a huge discussion not only in my family, but also in my extended family about my decision. When I first came to Mumbai the biggest challenge was to understand the place. Moreover, I have never taken any training in acting - everything I have learnt is on set. Television has given me everything. Today, whatever success I have is because of television. Mahadev helped me reach every household. In my journey I have got unconditional love from my audience.”

Actors do have their social responsibilities and one can never ignore that side. Mohit who has been portrayed Lord Mahadev for a long time on television says, “When I was not an actor I used to follow certain actors and we all do that. We get influenced by actors. Our audience has made us and we cannot ignore that. We are answerable to them. You just can’t say that I am an actor and my only job is to perform in front of camera, and I can eat anything and sell anything. An actor has to be socially responsible.”