Shruti Sharma On Her Role In Office Office’ Season 2: ‘ There Is No Compulsion To Deliver A Performance Like Pankaj Kapur’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Shruti Sharma, last seen on TV shows like “Gathbandhan,” “Namak Issk Ka” and “Nazar,” to name a few, takes over from Pankaj Kapur on the second season of “Office Office.”  She plays Anokhi Lal Mussadi, the daughter of Mussadi Lal, the beloved character played by Kapur during the first season.

Despite a short five-year run, “Office Office” (which ran between 2001-2006), still enjoys good recall. The second season of “Office Office” begins airing Mondays to Fridays on Doordarshan and streams on Prasar Bharti’s WAVES OTT, May 25 onwards. In a conversation with Variety India, she shares how the new season differs from the previous one and about dealing with the pressures of stepping into Pankaj Kapur’s shoes.

The new season’s premise will be the same as the first one’s. “The characters like Pandey Ji (Hemant Pandey), Shukla (Sanjay Mishra) and Bhatia (Manoj Pahwa) will be replaced with a fresh cast connected to the original ones. The theme of how a common man struggles with scams will stay the focus for this season, too. The issues are contemporary, but resonate with the struggles with a common man,” shares Shruti Sharma. 

While Mussadi was shown to have a defeatist attitude, his daughter will be shown as a fighter who fights for justice and tackles issues head-on and teaches scammers a lesson.  

Different strokes
Sharma reveals she was extremely nervous about playing the main lead in a show known for Pankaj Kapur’s excellent performance. “The entire cast of the first season was made up of legendary actors. The thought of stepping into Mr Kapur’s role was scary. I spoke with my family and told them that I was keen to do comedy and try different genres but this was daunting. My mom said that people have seen Pankaj Kapur as Mussadi, but not you as his daughter, Anokhi. There is no compulsion to deliver performances like him. So,  my Anokhi would be different from his,” she adds. 

Pankaj Kapur will not appear in this season, she confirms. Fans can just see his photo in moments where Anokhi remembers her dad. Shruti reveals that even the production house was under a lot of stress putting together an ensemble cast to match the talent of the first season. 

Experimentation needed
Western sitcoms have a loyal fan base in India. However, Indian producers hesitate from bankrolling comedy shows in the current milieu. “I feel makers have stopped taking on challenges. For a production house, making something like ‘Office Office’ is a huge risk when the family drama genre is on top. It is quite monotonous. I did not take up a TV show after ‘Mitti - Ek Nayi Pehchaan’ as I wanted something challenging. I feel production houses who are capable need to experiment with cinema and art. We surely need more comedy shows in India,” she opines. 

She also tells Variety India how the producers, Rajiv Mehra and his brother Umesh Mehra would gush about Pankaj Kapur’s dedication to his craft and humility. “It feels good to listen to such stories," she concludes.