“Cubicles has been a milestone in my career” – Abhishek Chauhan

Abhishek Chauhan is one young actor who has proved his versatility in a short span of time. While the audience has appreciated his performance in shows like ‘Undekhi’ and ‘Asur’ and films like ‘Mast Mein Rehne Ka’ and ‘Kill’, Piyush Prajapati, his character from ‘Cubicles’, holds a special place in their heart. The fourth season of the Sony LIV series started streaming a couple of days back.

In this interview, Abhishek talks about his experience of playing a character across multiple seasons, what makes the audience connect with Piyush and more.

It is quite rare two different seasons of a web series come out the same year.

Yes, you are right! I just realized the third season of ‘Cubicles’ came out in January this year and now, the fourth season has been launched in December. We shot for the fourth season before the third season came out.

From playing a helpless young man in ‘Undekhi’ to portraying a dark character in ‘Asur’, you have played a variety of roles. The first season of ‘Cubicles’ came out in 2019. You have consistently received a lot of appreciation for your portrayal of Piyush Prajapati in the show.

‘Undekhi’ was the first show I shot for but ‘Cubicles’ came out first. People have often told me that Piyush is a very relatable character and that’s why they like him so much. I keep receiving messages from people about the different things they like about Piyush. This show has been a milestone in my career. It is the only show of mine which has had four seasons.

How similar are you to Piyush in real life?

Piyush is extremely passionate about his work and does everything with a lot of sincerity. Though I don’t do a 9-5 job, I pursue my work as an actor very seriously. He is very close to his friends and I also have a similar equation with my friends. Piyush and I have some dissimilarities as well. We operate in different work environments. How he functions is also a little different from how I approach things.

You have played Piyush across four seasons. How do you ensure that the character comes across as fresh in every season for the audience?

I feel it’s a two-fold process. The makers and the writers had put in a lot of work into fleshing out the characters in a certain way. When I read the script of the first season, I got a good idea as to how I should portray Piyush. As an actor, you try to put your best forward. When I started working on the show in 2019, I was coming from a very different place. I was doing theatre. Right after shooting for ‘Undekhi’, I jumped into ‘Cubicles’.

You had not done a lot of work on the screen as an actor before that.

Yes! My experience in working in front of the camera was limited. The makers and writers helped me adapt to this new environment. The writers deserve a lot of credit for ensuring the character grows in a seamless manner. While working on the show, I feel I have grown tremendously as an actor and a person. When you are surrounded by a wonderful team of technicians, your job becomes much easier. As actors, we enter at the last stage. They spend a lot of time putting the world together. Of course, it is a challenge to keep things fresh when multiple seasons are involved. We had a wonderful team and that made all the difference.

Will there be a fifth season of ‘Cubicles’?

This question can be best answered by TVF and Sony LIV. As an actor, I would definitely want the show to be renewed for a fifth season.