From jail to reel: How Sohel Sheikh, a ‘criminal’, became an actor
In Hollywood, numerous actors had brushes with the law before achieving fame in their acting careers. Some notable examples include Robert Downey Jr, Mark Wahlberg, Danny Trejo, Snoop Dogg, Will Smith, John Lennon, and Khloe Kardashian, amongst others.
In the annals of the Bangladeshi entertainment scene, it's likely that no one had ever heard of such an individual– emerging from the shadows of a criminal past, lacking any ties to the industry or substantial financial influence– and yet, through sheer luck, achieving the status of an actor.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The audience has witnessed his performance and lauded his work in the recently released "Sinpaat". This is 38-year-old Sohel Sheikh, who played a pivotal role, under the direction of Mohammad Touqir Islam.
The Daily Star reached out to Sohel, who recently secured bail and was released from Pabna jail on January 11, coinciding with the premiere of "Sinpaat" in Rajshahi. However, he failed to attend the premiere of the show.
This is the first time the roughneck-turned-actor appeared for an interview for a national daily.
"I was charged for multiple cases, out of which, some were out of my knowledge, some were false charges, and there were even some locations of those crimes that I never visited in my life," said Sohel, who was born and brought up in Nagarbari. "Shaik dada, (Touqir) and his team took my responsibility and took me out of jail while we shot the cinema (series), they even took me for a court appearance in Pabna from Nagarbari after we shot the entire night for a wedding ceremony sequence."
Amongst those charges, there are cases of drug and robbery in the locality. "My life has been showcased in 'Sinpaat', the majority of the plot reflects my own experience," shared Sohel, while speaking using his friend's phone, as he doesn't have any. "My younger sister Mukti also played a role in the series," said the excited actor.
Out of four, Sohel is the third child of his parents. Since childhood, he has been a mischievous kid, and at one point, his parents gave up on correcting him. Due to his stubborn nature and disobedience, they couldn't even send him to school, not even for primary education. His mother passed away in 2004, while his father left for good in 2018.
"I couldn't attend my parents' funeral, both times, as I was inside the lock-up, and I didn't get the permission to pay them my last respect," shared an emotional Sohel, who added that this trauma still haunts him.
At the age of 13, he got into jail for the first time in his life, and since then, he has indulged in multiple crimes in Nagarbari and has been out on bail and sometimes in jail, this is how his life had been going on.
How did Touqir find him? In response, he shared, "I am a cinema freak, and I used to watch a lot of films. I have always believed that I, too, can act, and out of fun, I made some videos, and somehow, Shaik dada (Touqir) watched one of those. When he looked for me, I was in the lock-up."
The director managed to find him as soon as he was out of jail, and together they worked on "Sinpaat". "My favourite actors are Jasim and Manna, and I have watched their films in the cinemas, while amongst the romantic heroes, I have always loved Salman Shah," he said, adding, "I watched Bollywood films more frequently. During our time, we used to watch films on VCR, and Sunny Deol and Ajay Devgan were my favourites."
In "Sinpaat", there is a particular scene where Sohel snatches a necklace from a lady's neck on a ship. Other than Sohel, the lady and the person who played her husband, the rest of the passengers were completely unaware of the fact that there was a shoot going on; they thought it was a real robbery.
"It had to be a one-take shot, and the risk I took while shooting this scene, many big stars would never dare to take on," asserted the actor, who further jumped off from the launch and swam through the river. "That scene was totally up to me. The director said 'action', and I did the rest. I was pretty confident that I could do it. That scene was my personal favourite from the production."
Did you do any such thing in real life? To which, Sohel got shy and shared, "I have several experiences of such!"
Apart from his acting skills, he also sings well, and there were scenes of Sohel singing in the series, which later had to be removed due to copyright issues.
Acting career has given him a completely new identity and life. He shared that he is grateful to his director and the entire team. "My people in Nagarbari have gone crazy after watching 'Sinpaat' and have been appreciating my work. I want to keep on acting and wish to work on the big screen if luck favours," shared the actor, who now wants to have a family of his own, and live a simple, honest life, leaving his past behind.
"Since I was involved in the wrong path, who would marry such a person?" Said a regretful Sohel, sharing that he had fallen in love twice in his life, however, due to his past objectionable activities and lifestyle, none of them stayed in his life. "It is easy to get into this world, however, when you really want to come out, there are lots of struggles, societal issues, that make it impossible to get out of such life."
Moreover, he hoped that the pending cases would be closed soon, and he looks forward to leading a new life, the journey of which, had already begun two years ago, assured the actor. He also claimed that he is not associated with criminal activities anymore. "I want to turn my life around. Who becomes a criminal of his own volition? This role has given me a second life."
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