Actor Paramvir Cheema, who rose to prominence with his critically-acclaimed performances in ‘Black Warrant’ and ‘Chamak’, says as an outsider it was a conscious decision to build his presence first on OTT before stepping into the world of movies.

After appearing in a string of series such as ‘Kaleerein’, ‘Jeet Ki Zid’, ‘Half CA’, Cheema first gained recognition with ‘Chamak’ and ‘Tabbar’, but it was Vikramaditya Motwane’s web-series ‘Black Warrant’ that turned out to be his breakout performance, a PTI report from Mumbai stated yesterday.

He made his Hindi film debut with Aanand L Rai’s romance-drama, ‘Tere Ishq Mein’, starring Dhanush and Kriti Sanon in the lead. His latest release was “Border 2“, which has turned out to be a major hit in theatres.

“I’m not from the industry; I’m an outsider. I don’t have anyone from my family in the industry. So, I’ve to work a little harder to create a mark for myself in the hearts and minds of people.

“When I first worked on OTT, people started appreciating me. So, an audience base was built from there, and eventually I got confidence that, ‘People like me’. It made me feel that people are interested in watching (good) content, unlike earlier times where they would watch film (of only) stars,” Cheema told PTI in an interview.

The Jalandhar-born actor said that he was initially interested in acting, regardless of the platform. However, he soon recognised the potential of cinema.

“For me, acting is all about giving my best performance. Gradually, I understood the reach of films, and that you can become a star by doing films. This is what my manager used to tell me,” Cheema recalled.

“I knew that not many people will go to the theatre to watch my films, and I didn’t want to start out with a flop film. Hence, I build an audience (base),” he said.

In ‘Border 2’, Cheema portrays the character Subedar Nishaan Singh. The film, a sequel to the 1997 film of the same name, features Sunny Deol, Varun Dhawan, Ahan Shetty, Mona Singh and others.

“Doing a film with Sunny sir, Varun bhai, Diljit bhai, this is such a big cast, and if I’m able to stand out and create a mark for myself, then there’s nothing better I could ask for. I’m doing a Punjabi film as a lead (hero) with Sonam (Bajwa). I’m taking one small step at a time (in films),” the actor said.

Interestingly, ‘Border 2’ was going to be Cheema’s Hindi cinema debut but Aanand L Rai’s ‘Tere Ishq Mein’, in which he plays Sanon’s husband, was released first.

“I’m fortunate enough that in both the films, I got to work with some great people. Like, in ‘Tere Ishq Mein’ with Anand sir, Dhanush, and Kriti, and ‘Border 2’ the name itself is enough as everyone knows about the film.”

Cheema was one of the actors who had auditioned to play the title role in Imtiaz Ali’s ‘Amar Singh Chamkila’ but the role eventually was essayed by Diljit Dosanjh, and at the same time, he was offered to play the lead in the SonyLIV acclaimed series, “Chamak”, and he choose the latter. Cheema said he “regrets” missing out on the opportunity of being directed by Ali.