Sikandar Kher has won hearts with his performance as Daulat in Aarya series, and will now be seen in Dev Patel’s directorial debut The Monkey Man. As his career was on a smooth arc, this was also the time that his mother, actor-politician Kirron Kher, was diagnosed with cancer.

In this interview, Sikandar candidly speaks about his mother’s health, her battle with the disease and his upcoming projects.

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Talking about Kirron’s diagnosis, he said, “She got diagnosed when I was away. I was in Indonesia for The Monkey Man when we got to know about cancer. It was tough for all of us at home. It is something that is not very happy, but she has always been a fighter, and she is a strong woman. She has single handedly brought up this giant animal, me. She has managed this till now, her cancer is a small thing that she’ll take care of in no time. A lot of people sent her love, and that gave us hope and positivity. When I was at home, and her treatment was on, I saw her fight. She responded well and is doing well, that’s all we know. We never know what happens tomorrow, so it is best to go with the flow. The plan is to keep it simple and as normal as possible.”

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He adds, “It was particularly difficult during the lockdown due to Covid-19. I wasn’t going close to her. She would be on a different floor and I would be on a different floor. When I would return home after completing my schedule, I would quarantine myself and then meet her after days, when I wanted to see her every day. But that is behind us and mom is doing well.”

On the work front, Sikandar Kher received appreciation for his the 2020 show Aarya and its second season that released recently. He was also seen in Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi.

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Sikandar has wrapped up Dev Patel’s directorial debut, The Monkey Man. This film, Sikander’s first international project, is an upcoming American action thriller film written by Paul Angunawela, John Collee and Dev Patel, who is also the director of the film.

About how he bagged The Monkey Man, Sikander shares, “This film was a life changing experience for me. I am grateful and blessed for this opportunity. I had auditioned for Monkey Man quite a while ago, it was thanks to Seher (Seher Latif, late casting director). Dev didn’t get back for a while and I thought the project was not happening. Then, one fine day, Dev called me to ask if I had dates as he had liked my audition for Monkey Man and that he still wants me to do this role.”

For Monkey Man, Sikandar had to bulk up and gain quite a lot of weight. Speaking about this transformation, Sikandar says, “Monkey Man is the biggest opportunity I have got. It is a big step to reach out to a completely new audience. I wanted to give it my all. My part in the film requires a bulky figure and I have worked very hard to alter my structure to suit the role. An actor is only as good as his films. Life’s given me this huge opportunity, and I am working very hard to stay true to the character. My reel life characters have been very personal for me. I try to look like them, think like them and act like them. It won’t be wrong to say I like to get under the skin of every role that comes my way. Obviously the change is a gradual process.”

Sikandar will also be seen in Vasan Bala’s Monica, O My Darling, which also features Rajkummar Rao, Radhika Apte and Huma Qureshi among others.