Nawazuddin in a still from Sacred Games (courtesy Netflix)

Highlights The first season of Sacred Games released in July

Pankaj Tripathi plays the character of Guruji in the series

He says Guruji will get more importance in the second season

Remember Ganesh Gaitonde's "teesra baap" aka Guruji from Sacred Games? Played by actor Pankaj Tripathi, the character of Guruji was shrouded in mystery in the first season of the series with very few glimpses of the magnanimity of his impact on gangster Gaitonde's life. Now, in an interview with mid-day, Pankaj Tripathi reveals that Guruji will have more screen-time and make his presence felt with a "larger-than-life" role in Sacred Games' second season. "Guruji is a larger-than-life part and will become the most sought-after character in the series. My character becomes as big as Gaitonde," mid-day quoted Pankaj Tripathi as saying.

Still from Sacred Games (Image courtesy Netflix)

Ganesh Gaitonde, the once-deadly-gangster-mob boss who has made a fierce return after 15 years, is played by Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Sacred Games, which also stars Saif Ali Khan as a feisty cop and Radhika Apte as a RAW agent. During the eight-episode first season, Gaitonde made several references to Guruji, mentioning how his story of betrayal influenced him to be as revengeful he is today. About working with Nawazuddin, Mr Tripathi said they were part of the same acting school and hence are more like buddies: "Nawaz bhai and I lived in the same hostel at the NSD. We admire each other's work. Since we come from the same acting background, our approach to work is similar. We have been taught by the same people. When we meet, we hardly talk work, we reminisce about the old times."

Speaking to IANS about the show's detailed format, Nawazuddin said Sacred Games actually helped him better as an actor: "It has a much nuanced portrayal on-screen. It has not only given me a chance to go deeper into the character but also explore the possibility to work on a scene better."

Sacred Games is directed by Vikramaditya Motwane and Anurag Kashyap. It is based on Vikram Chandra's critically acclaimed novel of the same name. The first season released exclusively on Netflix on July 6. It was welcomed with rave reviews with fans eager to know details about the second season's release, no intel about which have been shared so far.