Actor Dino Morea says that he quit Bollywood in 2011 as he did not want to take up 'rubbish' roles but managed to stage a comeback due to the OTT revolution.
"In 2011, I stopped doing films as I just did not want to say yes to mediocre or simply rubbish roles. This gave me time to work on myself as a performer and then OTT happened, which worked in my favour," he told DH.
Dino began his Bollywood career with a supporting role in the 1999 release Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi. It was, however, the horror-thriller Raaz that established him as a household name. The film garnered a fair deal of attention with its spooky plot and soulful tunes, which helped it do well at the box office.
While many thought that the response to Raaz would open new avenues for him, that did not quite happen as most of his subsequent films didn't do as well as expected. Even films such as Aksar and Aap Ki Khatir, which featured several popular songs, failed to benefit his career too much. He quit after the release of Pyaar Impossible!, a box office bomb.
The actor eventually made a comeback to showbiz with a key role in the web series Mentalhood, starring Karisma Kapoor. He consolidated his standing in the digital space with Hostages and Tandav, which became reasonably popular despite the mixed reviews.
This prompted Dino to take The Empire, which featured him in the role of the fierce Shaibani Khan. The period saga premiered on Hotstar a few days ago, garnering attention with his grand visuals.
"The response for my work has been overwhelming and I am thrilled by the same," said Dino.
The series, created by Nikkhil Advani, has a star-studded cast that included veteran actor Shabana Azmi, Kunal Kapoor and Drashti Dhami. Dino says working with them was a good experience.
"Working with good actors always brings out the best in you," said the actor.
The series comes at a time when Dino is going through a good phase on the professional front. His latest production venture Helmet premiered on an OTT platform on September 3, emerging as a digital success. He hopes to explore his potential as an actor and a producer in the coming months.
"Acting is my first love but I want to tell stories as a producer too," added the star.