Exclusive: Anant Joshi On Playing Annu Mishra In Gullak 5—’ I Didn’t Mess With The Cornerstone Of The Character’

Gullak 5 is streaming on Sony LIV and has been winning hearts just like its previous four seasons. However, this time, one major change was to one of the central characters—Annu Mishra. Actor Vaibhav Raj Gupta played the role for four seasons, and this time actor Anant joined to replace him. In an exclusive interview with IWMBuzz, the actor opened up on joining the show, replacing Vaibhav and more. When asked about his reaction to fans getting shocked by him replacing Vaibhav as Annu, the actor shared that the audience reaction is very natural. Anant emphasized that when a character gets replaced, the audience reacts, but this is very natural, and he is taking it very sportingly. He also shared that, upon joining the show, he came to understand the love and fandom it enjoys. However, when asked how he transformed himself into the character, Anant shared, “I didn’t mess with the cornerstone of the character, because I love this character a lot.” He further shared that writing plays an important role in helping a character shine, whether it’s Annu, Aman, Bittu Ki Mummy, or any other character on the show, and that the writing is great. Highlighting what he did to slip into Annu’s character, Anant shared that he did not mess with the tone or the way Annu’s character speaks. But every actor brings a different interpretation, so he gave his best but didn’t mess with the cornerstone, whether his ‘Andaz’ or speaking way, that he didn’t mess with. Anant, on the comparisons with Vaibhav playing the character of Annu, shared that he never took on roles that invited comparisons, but this time it happened. However, as comparisons are there, this isn’t something wrong but a natural response. But Anant also emphasized that he was nervous because someone else had played the character before, and now he was doing so, so the audience would react; that curiosity and nervousness were there, which, in fact, happens with every other character he does. Produced by The Viral Fever (TVF), with Arunabh Kumar, Gullak season 5 was released on June 5, 2026.