Vikrant Massey Reveals Why People Misunderstood His Retirement Post: Limited Words... - EXCLUSIVE

National

Award winning actor Vikrant Massey surprised many in the film industry by announcing a break from movies in December 2024. The announcement sparked widespread speculation and concern among fans and colleagues alike. The actor has been part of films ever since then and has also shared that his post was misunderstood at the time of announcement. However, now in an exclusive interview with Navika Kumar, Group Editor-in-Chief, Times Now on Times Now 20th Anniversary Special Broadcast, Vikrant revealed he was facing burnout and wanted to spend time with his family.

Vikrant Massey reveals why his retirement post was misunderstood

In a chat with us, Vikrant Massey said he continues to be asked why he “retired,” adding that his statement was widely misunderstood. He explained that actors taking a break is still unusual and perhaps that is why his decision was misread. According to him, the intention was never to step away permanently but to take time to spend it with his family. He said, "X pe jitney bhi limited shabd aapko milte hain, usme mene sari imformation bharne ki koshish ki and now we know ki sari information pahochi nahi. A lot of it was misconstrued. I just wanted to take a break. I was facing a severe burnout at that time." When asked if the films he was doing at that time took a toll on him. "Not a lot of people ask this. We spend so much of emotion, it is not the number of hours you are putting - 12 hours of 14 to 16 hours. It is tough as is, but as artists, as actors, we are spending ourselves, mentally, emotionally. I don't know I'm actually figuring it out that we spend ourselves mentally and emotionally while doing a project - to portray a particular feeling. So, it makes you tired and 12th Fail - I'm so grateful for everything that happened with 12th Fail and Sabarmati Express and Sector 26 at that time, because it is really difficult to shoot 4 films in a year."

Vikrant Massey on what he did during 7 months break

When asked if doing 4 films in a year is called commercial success, Vikrant responds, "This is people's blessings. 20 years before, we were not in a position to choose, you had to go out there and work to achieve certain things in life, but by the grace of god now and probably a couple of years ago when the topic of retirement came up, I felt there is no need to do 4 films now. Some of these films I watched twice or thrice."The Mirzapur star also explained what kept him busy during the 7 months break he took. He shared, "I saw all my films. I realised if I really want to take myself on next level, for that I will have to better myself as an actor. There was no difference in my performance in the last few films I felt. I felt let's do some homework and go to the drawing board. Let's also spend time with your little one. My son was born, and most of his early memories were 2 videos, which my wife had sent. I felt such a shame, what's the point of working so hard and achieving so much in life that my son started saying Papa in my absence when I was not there. When he started walking I wasn't there. I realised work with be on, but these things won't come back.'

Vikrant Massey's work front

On the professional front, Vikrant has several projects in the pipeline. He will next be seen in Vishal Bhardwaj’s O’Romeo, a romantic thriller co-starring Shahid Kapoor and Triptii Dimri, scheduled for release on February 13. He is also part of Musafir Cafe, which features Vedika Pinto and Mahima Makwana. The web series, created by Sharanya Rajgopal, is set to stream on Netflix. Notably, Musafir Cafe also marks Vikrant’s debut as a producer. In addition to the lead cast, the show stars Adil Hussain, Anubha Fatehpuria, Rajeev Siddhartha, Loveleen Mishra and Sadiya Siddiqui. The official streaming date is yet to be announced.