From Patna to Panchayat: The fourth season of Amazon Prime Video’s web series ‘Panchayat’ has recently come, and there has been a lot of discussion among the audience about it. This series has crafted each of its characters so beautifully that they seem like our own. Pradhan Ji, Secretary Ji, Deputy Pradhan Prahlad Chacha, Rinki, Manju Devi, Bhushan Kumar, Binod – all have created their own identity. But among all these, there is another character who has left his unique mark on the screen – Secretary Ji’s trusted assistant ‘Bikas’!

Actor Chandan Roy, who plays the character of Vikas, is known in every household today thanks to ‘Panchayat’. But do you know, reaching this point was not at all easy for him? His journey from Patna to Phulera village of ‘Panchayat’ is no less than a film story!

The struggle from the ghat of Patna College to the flight to Mumbai

Recently, Chandan Roy shared his heart’s feelings in the ANI podcast. He spoke openly about his career and the struggle to reach Mumbai. He told how Patna is deeply rooted in him:

“Patna College is right next to this place and I did my BAMC (Bachelor of Mass Communication) from here. My hostel was right on the river bank, those beautiful memories! There was a Kali temple and a Krishna temple nearby. I used to wake up early in the morning to such lovely bhajans. I used to do theatre here too, we used to rehearse in Premchand Rangshala.”

This shows that Chandan’s association with acting started in Patna itself, and art is deep in his roots.

He had a passion to become an actor since childhood!

Chandan tells that he had realized in his childhood itself that he wanted to become an actor. There was no internet in those days, so he used to keep newspaper cuttings safely. Columns like “Nayi Dishayen Nayi Rahein” worked as Google for him, from where he got information related to career. With this thought in mind, he studied mass communication, so that he could be around the camera.

Then came the question of going to Mumbai. Chandan knew that it was difficult to get money from his family for acting. They could pay for a job in a bank or railways, but not for acting or going to Mumbai. He says, “Even today, going to Mumbai for acting is considered a luxury. It is like putting one’s career at stake for people, if it works, it’s fine, if it loses, it’s lost. It’s like a gamble.”

Chandan showed wisdom to deal with this challenge. He studied radio and television from IIMC (Indian Institute of Mass Communication). He even got a job, but the artist in him was not letting him rest. He felt that he was leaving theatre and his real path was not journalism, but going to Mumbai and doing acting. Then he joined “Bahurup Art” in JNU (Jawaharlal Nehru University).

Finally, a time came when Chandan felt that he had saved enough money to spend for 4-5 months. Without leaving his job, he headed to Mumbai! This step shows how passionate Chandan was about his dreams and how willing he was to take any risk.

Chandan Roy’s journey teaches us that if you have determination and courage, no difficulty can stop you from fulfilling your dreams. The mark he has left as Vikas in ‘Panchayat’ is the result of his struggle and hard work.