I am secure in my own space, and that is my biggest advantage

John Abraham is among those actors who have been in a position to successfully carve a reasonably off-centre path for themselves in the film industry, which boasts of a different mix of subjects in the capability of a producer and an actor. The actor premiered in Bollywood in 2003 by Mahesh Bhatt and Pooja Bhatt in Jism. Since then, he has come quite a distance, charting a path that was unique. As the initial years were tough for John, films like Dostana, New York, and Madras Café (which he also produced) turned the tide in his favour. This season, his movie Mumbai Saga was among the few films that saw a theatrical release. Satyameva Jayate 2, starring the actor, was meant to open on Eid this season, but was pushed ahead.

Throughout his career, John has made an effort to stay relevant within an industry that's fast-evolving, with plenty of new faces being launched every year. Bring this up, and John says, "I'm only worried about work. I have never been a part of rat races and also have opted to work purely on instinct. Over the years, some space has become earmarked as mine. Sometimes, only the director and I have seen the films that I have been part of, but which has not deterred me."

Discussing other actors in the market, who have an identical trajectory as his, we're reminded of John's Mumbai Saga co-star, Emraan Hashmi. Coincidentally, Emraan premiered in Bollywood in the same year as him by the Bhatts' banner. He says, "Emraan and I are very similar in the manner we are and the trajectories we've. I am secure in my space, therefore is he, and that is our biggest advantage. We are far more relevant than we ever were." John adds, "We are actually in a far more mature place as actors. We're for the reason that space where our audience will not float depending on what we're doing. We have their trust. The audience will watch a Sanjay Dutt or a Salman Khan film irrespective of what they do because their audience is fixed. It creates me feel good that however small or big, we've a fixed audience. In these 18 years, I don't think Emraan and I even came near to working with one another.