Playing the rebellious lover: Shane Nigam

He won our hearts as a young dancer in one of those early dance reality shows. Years later, we saw him in Rajeev Ravi’s Annayum Rasoolum, portraying Anna’s brother. Little Shane Nigam was all grown up and barely recognisable. Today we know him not as actor/mimicry artist Abi’s son, but as that guy who stabbed Dulquer Salmaan’s character in Kammatti Paadam. This month, Shane will be seen playing a leading character in Kismat. Speaking about how he landed in his first lead role, Shane says, “It was Rajeev sir (Rajeev Ravi) who is producing Kismat.”             

“Since I have worked with him before, he suggested my name for this movie, which unravels in Ponnani. I play a character named Irfan, an engineering dropout who is back in his hometown and is into bike remodelling. Irfan is a rebellious, impulsive and immature person. That’s what I have understood after portraying the character. He belongs to a prominent family and ends up falling in love with a girl from another religious background. The rest of the story is about what happens afterwards.”

Shane has had a good start. The projects he has been part of till date is already being considered cult classics. About how he landed his debut role in Annayum Rasoolum, Shane says, “Each of those experiences was new to me. When it comes to Annayum Rasoolum, there was no preparation for the character I was portraying. For Kammatti Paadam, Rajeev sir just called me one day and told me about the character and asked me if I could do it. It was a very informal approach. The characters I have done so far were very different. Irfan in Kismat is again a very different character.”

So what does Shane do apart from acting? “I’m currently pursuing my final year engineering at Rajagiri College, Kochi. I wish to study cinematography after this.”
Does his actor father guide him when it comes to his on-screen characters? “We do discuss cinema in general, but there is never a serious discussion about a particular character. We all know that we are passionate about cinema and acting. I believe that too much discussion might ruin things,” he says with a chuckle. Kismat is directed by debutant Shanavas K. Bavutty. The movie, which is based on true incidents, will hit the screens on July 29.