Avinash Tiwary delighted to be part of Karan Johar's Ghost Stories

It has taken him time, but actor Avinash Tiwary's career has shaped up nicely after starring in the romance Laila Majnu (2018), written by Imtiaz Ali. He will next be seen opposite Mrunal Thakur in a short directed by Karan Johar for the Netflix anthology film, Ghost Stories (2020).

"I never thought Karan Johar will cast me," Tiwary said. "As an outsider, this was a perception fed to me. So, when the offer came my way, it validated my faith in my craft."

Tiwary made his big-screen debut in another critically acclaimed film, Tu Hai Mera Sunday (2017), and got his breakthrough with the Sajid Ali film, a modern recreation of the classic love story.

"After  Laila Majnu, I had no expectations. I had waited two-and-a-half years for the film's release, but it was wiped out in a week's time. I was disappointed, but the film got a new lease of life after its release on an OTT platform," the actor recounted.

"For four months after the film's release, I had no offers coming my way. Then Anushka Sharma's production house [Clean Slate Films] approached me for [the Netflix film] Bulbul," he continued.

The actor also has a key role in the Hindi remake of The Girl On The Train (2016) starring Parineeti Chopra. He will be reunited with his Laila Manju co-star Tripti Dimri for Bulbul.

For now, Tiwary is keenly awaiting Ghost Stories, which begins streaming on Netflix at midnight on the intervening night of 31 December 2019 and 1 January 2020.

"Karan Johar constantly seeks talent; he has his ear to the ground. He had not watched Laila Majnu, but he had heard of me. So when this project came to him, he sought me out. Working with him has done wonders to my self-confidence. Now, I feel as if I deserved this for long," the young actor said.