Did you know Pankaj Tripathi's photo was once on a ‘wanted board in police station’? Actor reveals why it happened

Pankaj Tripathi recalled earlier there were a handful of casting agencies, and he had to go from “door to door, claiming that we are actors”.

Actor Pankaj Tripathi has shared an incident when he came to know that his picture was seen on the wanted board of a police station set. Speaking with Screen, Pankaj said that the incident took place during the early days of his career when there were only a few casting agencies. (Also Read | Ranveer Allahbadia row: Pankaj Tripathi questions sensibility, says lack of censorship doesn’t mean one can say anything)

Fans saw Pankaj Tripathi last in Amar Kaushik's Stree 2.

Pankaj Tripathi's pic was once on a wanted board

Pankaj said, "There was no social media and a handful of casting agencies. These casting agencies have increased now. Earlier, we just had to go from door to door, claiming that we are actors. They used to keep a cardboard carton in which everyone can come and put their photos. At the end of the day, the carton is sent to the floor above to the assistant’s office. I put my pictures in so many such cartons.”

Pankaj explains why it happened

He added, “Once, a friend of mine got cast in a crime show somewhere. It was a police station setup. He saw a WANTED board hanging there on the set. My friend called me and said, ‘Arey wanted mein teri photo daal di hai (They have given your pic under wanted people).’ I said, ‘Aise kaise (How)?’ I recalled that I had left many of my photos at their office. So, when the art department needed any thief or gangster pictures for the ‘Wanted’ board, they just used those pictures, so mine was up there once.”

About Pankaj's career

Pankaj had brief roles in films such as Chigurida Kanasu (2003), Run (2004), Apaharan (2005), Omkara (2006), Mithya (2008) and Agneepath (2011). He gained recognition with Gangs of Wasseypur and Dabangg 2. Pankaj has also starred in Fukrey, Singham Returns, Masaan, Anaarkali of Aarah, Bareilly Ki Barfi, Luka Chuppi, Ludo, 83 and Main Atal Hoon, among many others.

The actor last appeared in Amar Kaushik's Stree 2 along with Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Abhishek Banerjee, and Aparshakti Khurana. He will be next seen in Metro In Dino, which is helmed by Anurag Basu. The anthology film also stars Sara Ali Khan, Aditya Roy Kapur, Ali Fazal, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Anupam Kher, Neena Gupta, and Konkona Sen Sharma in lead roles. Pankaj also has Thug Life and Mirzapur The Film in the pipeline.