Ranvir Shorey Opens Up About the Fear of Typecasting
Actor Ranvir Shorey has revealed that the fear of being typecast has consistently influenced his career decisions, pushing him to seek out diverse roles that challenge his comfort zone. In an interview with PTI, Shorey explained how this concern has shaped his choices since he began acting.
“I’ve tried never to repeat parts because I grew up on the fringes of the filming business. The word ‘typecasting’ has haunted me from the time I became an actor, and that has influenced a lot of the choices that I’ve made. So, each time, I try to do something new and completely different. That’s what the endeavour is,” Shorey stated.
Versatile Roles Across Film and OTT
Shorey has built a reputation as a versatile actor with roles in mainstream blockbusters like Ek Tha Tiger, Singh Is Kinng, and Lakshya, as well as independent films such as Khosla Ka Ghosla, Bheja Fry, Mithya, A Death in the Gunj, and Sonchiriya. On the OTT front, he has appeared in series including Metro Park, Sunflower, and Tabbar.
Paramvir Cheema on Avoiding Stereotypes
Shorey’s co-star in Pyramid Scheme, Paramvir Cheema, echoed similar concerns about being slotted into similar roles. Cheema, known for Border 2, Black Warrant, and Chamak, said he consciously tries to avoid falling into the trap of repetitive characters.
“The fear of repeating myself would haunt me. I would mostly be offered Punjabi characters, silent parts. For instance, in case of Border 2, I had to convince director Anurag Singh to not give me a character where I’ve to wear a pagri (turban) and let me speak Haryanvi. I am glad he trusted me,” Cheema said.
He added, “I had done Sapne vs Everyone, which was on YouTube, in which I played a boy from Delhi. When The Pyramid Scheme came to me, I was like, ‘This will be a breakthrough role,’ and I knew I had to give my best, and I did.”
About Amazon Prime’s ‘Pyramid Scheme’
Pyramid Scheme is set in the culturally rich city of Haridwar and follows Goldy (played by Cheema), a charming and enterprising young man chasing a better life, who finds himself pulled into the flashy world of pyramid marketing. The series, created by Shreynash Pandey and directed by Ashish R Shukla and Pandey, is written by Akshendra Mishra. Initially conceived as a feature film, it evolved into a series format.
Director Ashish R Shukla explained the transition: “It was better for me to make this a show because we had 300 pages written. As a film, it was difficult to sell it. Wherever we went, we got a lot of ‘gyaan’, but no one made it; everyone told us, ‘This should be made, this shouldn’t be made.’ Until Sherry (Shreyansh) came on board and there was TVF that could support this — because the kind of subjects TVF was doing, in the entire industry, no one was doing that — it was very easy for them to believe in this.” The team rewrote the script from scratch and added many subplots.
Pandey, who has backed shows like Panchayat and Aspirants, said they instantly connected with the idea. “If something creates a memory so deep and so strong in you, then you feel that this is a story worth telling. That’s why we said, ‘Let’s make this.’”
Human Cost and Satirical Undertones
Despite being centred on scams, the series focuses on the human cost of such schemes, including strained relationships, shattered aspirations, and the shame experienced by victims. Shukla noted, “Though it was also a satire or dark comedy, the attempt was to make it humane. Also, we wanted it to be people’s story rather than the characters just becoming black and white.”
Shorey added that while the show revolves around a fraudulent scam, what drew him in was its deep dive into human nature. “A lot of times, people, even after they have been conned, will not tell anyone. It’s like a personal shame that you carry. And like he (Shukla) said, that one thing — which every human being, no matter how desperate the situation life may have put them in, has — is a small flame of hope. When that is snuffed out, that is the violation.”
Cast and Production
Pyramid Scheme also stars Shekhar Suman, Aanjjan Srivastav, Alfia Jafry, Ashish Raghava, Akhilendra Mishra, Smita Bansal, Vijay Kumar, Indresh Malik, Ravi Bhel, Sushant Singh, Sonal Jha, and Sadanand Patil. The series is produced by The Viral Fever (TVF).
