What do they do?
Television has become the most demanding medium for an actor as there is much less time to rehearse and you may not receive your lines until just before the shoot. “If you have the talent, passion, sincerity and are ready to work hard, TV can be the ideal showcase of your personality and a doorway to openings in all sorts of new cinema, including mainstream Hindi films,” says Yashraj Jadhav, dean at Anupam Kher’s Actor Prepares institute in Mumbai.
This profession also requires knowledge of some aspects of filmmaking and sound and light use. Acting is first and foremost a craft, therefore, you must constantly improve upon it. Acting not only allows one to play a character for a period of time, it also gives one the opportunity to contribute ideas to scripts, learn new skills or research. In the initial phase, acting often does not offer people financial security, but you tend to grow as more years get added to your experience. Some of the major production houses include Balaji Telefilms, UTV Productions, Endemol and Optimystix.
Television actors do their job on recorded episodes of television series. Typically, an actor can be the principal cast of the show/ series or could be a supporting cast. Supporting cast actors need not necessarily be on every episode of the series. They may also make a guest appearance for a single or limited number of episodes. A principal cast will also enjoy being featured or listed during the opening credits of a TV show to be recognized as one key element of the show.
A supporting cast may or may be featured in the opening credits but with time, he/ she can start featuring; especially if the character played becomes popular amongst viewers or writers of the show. A supporting actor might have to struggle to begin with, but with time and variety of roles, the scope of growth increases manifold.
