Dinesh Soni, a versatile actor and live entertainer, has built a diverse career across television, films, commercials and live events. He has been part of popular television shows such as Balika Vadhu, Piya Basanti Re, 26/12 and Baa Bahoo Aur Baby, along with several other productions. He has also showcased his comic side through shows including Comedy Ka Badshah, which he won, Just Laugh Baaki Maaf and Darz Kiya Hai. His film appearances include Meri Pyaari Bindu in a special cameo, while he has also been associated with projects such as Laxman Rekha and Goggles of Rajesh Khanna.
With more than two decades of experience entertaining audiences, Dinesh believes live entertainment offers an immediacy and human connection that screen acting cannot replicate. Talking about the difference, he says, “For me, the biggest difference is the immediate human connection. When you are acting for television or films, there is a camera between you and the audience. You perform your part, and much later you get to know how people reacted to it. In live entertainment, the reaction is right in front of you.”
He adds, “I have spent more than two decades entertaining people, and after thousands of shows, I still feel that there is nothing quite like standing on a stage and feeling the energy of an audience. Their laughter, silence, applause, expressions, everything becomes part of your performance.”
Dinesh feels that live performances also demand a different kind of spontaneity. “As an actor, you perform a character which may differ from the person you are in real life. But as a live entertainer, you perform as yourself, and you are also responsible for creating the moment. You have to read the room, improvise, change your pace and sometimes completely change your plan. That unpredictability is what makes live entertainment so exciting for me,” he says.
Reflecting on his television journey and how it influenced his live performances, Dinesh says, “Acting taught me something very important, to observe people and understand a situation before reacting to it. When I was learning acting at Kreating Charakters, observation, diction, being real, feeling the situation, projection and voice modulation were all part of my training, which helps me a lot as a live performer also.”
He adds, “When you work as an actor, you learn about expressions, body language, timing, pauses, emotions and characterisation. All of that has helped me immensely as an anchor and live performer. But live entertainment taught me the other side of the equation. As an actor, you are often given a character and a script. As an anchor, you are interacting with real people who don’t have a script.”
Dinesh believes the combination of both experiences has shaped his approach to entertainment. “I learnt to combine the discipline of an actor with the spontaneity of a live performer. I don’t look at acting and anchoring as two separate worlds anymore. I feel my acting experience gave me the tools, while live entertainment taught me how to use those tools in the moment,” he says.
