By Durga Chakravarty
New Delhi, Feb 18 (IANS): He has ruled the silver screen for over three decades and is now set to step into the digital world with the upcoming series 'Rudra - The Edge of Darkness', an Indian adaptation of the Idris Elba-starrer 'Luther'. Bollywood superstar Ajay Devgn does not worry about comparisons between the two as he says he has never aped anyone.
The 52-year-old star revealed the reason to IANS on why he chose 'Rudra - The Edge of Darkness' by Rajesh Mapuskar for his digital debut.
Ajay, who has given back-to-back blockbusters such as 'Singham', 'Golmaal, 'Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior', 'Ishq' and 'Gangaajal' to name a few, said that Rudra is cool and super sharp.
In a conversation with IANS, Ajay said: "I like the idea of a cop who beat criminals at their game because he's able to stay ahead of them. He's not a gun-toting guy, he's more a mind-game kind of policeman. Rudra is cool, yet super-sharp.
Helmed by ace director Rajesh Mapuskar, this riveting psychological crime drama. The six-episode series is an Indian rendition of the globally successful British series, 'Luther'.
The series has a dark and complex narrative that is an idiosyncratic race-against-the-clock thriller delving into the psyche of highly-intelligent criminals and the detective who hunts them.
Since it is a remake of 'Luther', comparisons would follow.
Does that come as an added pressure?
Ajay said that it is a "re-imagined Indian version" of 'Luther'.
The actor added: "I like the original and I liked Idris Elba in it. As far as comparisons go, I have never aped anyone. After 30 years of acting, you can only be yourself. So, it's ridiculous to draw parallels. But I can hardly change the way people think. It's their prerogative."
Ajay feels no pressure about his work in the upcoming series.
"My job is doing something with complete honesty. Honesty doesn't come with any kind of pressure," he concluded.
Produced by Applause Entertainment in association with BBC Studios India, the crime drama starring Ajay Devgn, Raashi Khanna, Esha Deol, Atul Kulkarni, Ashwini Kalsekar, Tarun Gahlot, Ashish Vidyarthi, and Satyadeep Misra in pivotal roles, is set to release on March 4 on Disney+ Hotstar.
It will be released in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Malayalam, and Bengali.