Behind The Mask

Ankush Chowdhary, the blind man from the original cast of the Marathi blockbuster All The Best, was just another college student before the acting bug bit him. A student of Parels’s M D College, he joined Shaheer Sable’s acting and dance group, Maharashtrachi Lokdhara. It was here that the one-act play, All The Best was conceived. It sweeped all prizes at inter-collegiate competitions. The bigwigs of Marathi theatre — Devendra Pem, Chandrakant Kulkarni and Mahesh Manjrekar — spotted the group at once and their amateur attempt was given a commercial facelift.

Ankush performed for the first 825 shows and then dropped out of the play. "I was with the play for two years and had begun feeling the urge to do something new," says Ankush.

Ankush has acted in serials like Shriman Shrimati and Teri Bhi Chup Meri Bhi Chup. But theatre for him is like oil to a vehicle. "You may run it on petrol or diesel, but oil is a must," he says. So, Ankush will always be on stage with one play onthe cards.