Sharad Kelkar claims respect | After dubbing for Prabhas
Sharad Kelkar recently dubbed the Hindi version of Prabhas’ Salaar. His next ventures include The Legend Of Hanuman Season 3 on Disney Plus Hotstar and Rohit Shetty’s program Indian Police Force.
Sharad Kelkar, one of Bollywood’s most known voices, recently talked up about dubbing for South Indian films and being recognized as Prabhas’ voice in South Indian films dubbed in Hindi. The actor first worked with Prabhas in Baahubali, and his most recent collaboration with the Telugu star was Prashanth Neel’s Salaar.
“I’ve stammered since I was a child.” I used to stammer until I got into acting. “I never imagined myself as an actor, let alone a voice actor,” Sharad recalls, recalling how his voice gained a new fan base after he dubbed for Prabhas’ characters in the Baahubali movie and Salaar. In the Hindi version of Adipurush, he also dubbed for Prabhas.
Sharad Kelkar stated of dubbing for South Indian films, “In the south, I haven’t done much work in a very long time.” I haven’t dubbed any Hollywood movie in a long time. But the recognition I received for Prabhas’ flicks was significant. I’m not aware of anyone in the voicing industry experiencing this. People have begun to recognize the voice-over artists, such as Shreyas (Talpade) in Pushpa and Sachin Gole in KGF. So, I believe that after Baahubali, it is no longer true that you don’t know who has dubbed, whose voice it is.”
Sharad attributes the change to Baahubali and wants filmmakers to begin mentioning voice actors in end credits and movie posters. “I would say that Baahubali brought about that change in the industry, and people began to recognize and respect the voice actors as well,” he says. People recognized me, but they also realized I was a voice actor.
They began to recognize my voice as it was utilized to dub these films, and other performers began to receive notoriety as well. That makes me really delighted. You know, if you see any animation picture in Hollywood, the headlines would say that such and so actor dubbed for so and so character. That should be available in India as well. I’m not sure why it hasn’t happened yet. Maybe they don’t want to give credit to voice performers, but they should.”
“When you stammer, nobody notices the voice,” Sharad Kelkar explained when asked how he mastered stammering. But after I got over that hurdle, I started getting jobs. I realized that my breathing pattern was incorrect, which was why I stammered. Many children and their parents ask me how I overcame stammering, and I tell them that it was my problem.
It’s as if I asked you to race for 100 meters and then utter a few lines; you couldn’t do it because you couldn’t regulate your breathing. You’ll be gasping for air. That was my experience. I stopped stammering once I regulated my breathing. Then I started observing other actors and working on how they talk so fluently. People began to notice my voice after my stammering ceased.”
“When it came to dubbing, I realized I didn’t know the craft.” As an actor, there are situations when dubbing can help you improve your performance. You can also destroy the scenario by dubbing poorly. So I went to Mona Shetty to learn dubbing, and she told me that I have a good voice but that I’d need to learn how to dub. And so my career into dubbing began. I began with very tiny projects, and then came Baahubali. There was no turning back. “The work kept coming in,” he added.
Sharad Kelkar’s next job as a voice actor is the animated series The Legend Of Hanuman on Disney Plus Hotstar, in which he voices Ravana. The actor claims he was drawn to the show because of how it was written.
He reported that Prabhas gave him a hug and stated, “You were very good,” which Sharad views as the highest praise. He continued by saying that he and Nani talked about certain sequences and how they performed. Despite not speaking to one another during the movie’s production, he said that they were both in agreement. Nonetheless, the actors got to know one another while Nani was in Mumbai promoting the movie.
“I chose the show because of how it is written.” It’s all written down. Writing is a difficult skill to master. In India, I believe writers’ names should be prominently displayed, in large letters. That is my main request to the makers. Writers should be compensated. The show’s writers, Sharad Devarajan and Jeevan Kang, have done an excellent job. When I write mythology stories, my first nervousness fades if the writing is strong.
We voice acted first, and then the animation was developed, so I had the freedom to explore Ravan. I wanted to break the mold. I wanted people to be intrigued by Ravan. I wanted viewers to be intrigued by Ravan’s personality, as well as his interpersonal interactions with his family and his adversary. So dubbing for specific characters is a terrific experience for an actor,” Sharad said.
