The stars of Korean Netflix drama Squid Game are now more popular than ever since the show became an international hit.

Its supporting cast has also been thrust into the spotlight, like 34-year-old Indian actor Anupam Tripathi, who starred as Player 199 aka the too trusting Pakistani migrant worker Abdul Ali.

Tripathi’s path to fame was an uphill one. He was born in New Delhi to a middle-class family and made his showbiz debut in India in 2006. He moved to Korea in 2010 after his friend recommended him to get a scholarship from the Korea National University of Arts (KARTs).

I hid my plans to move to Korea from my parents while preparing for the entrance examination [because] they were firmly against it. They only relented after I was accepted, he said.

When he first got to Korea, he had problems with the cultural differences, like the food and language but he overcame them little by little.

And despite his family's disapproval, Tripathi persevered with his dreams and juggled his work as a theatre actor along with his studies.

In 2014, he got his first movie role in Ode To My Father, which is the fourth highest-grossing film in the history of South Korean cinema.

However, for the past decade, Tripathi was only cast in bit roles, many of which saw him playing migrant workers.

Tripathi never complained about being typecast though. In fact, he was happy to take on the roles as he was grateful to have work and also took it as a way to improve his Korean.

After years of little progress in his career, he would sometimes ask himself: “Would I be able to continue living here if I don’t have a job?” Despite these difficulties, he remained optimistic and worked hard at whatever job he was offered.

Interestingly, it was his role as a Pakistani migrant worker in Squid Game that would completely change his life.

Now that his face is seen on screens all around the world, it seems like Tripathi's days of being a struggling actor are over.

Both his mother and brothers have told the actor that they are proud of him for doing such a great job. Sadly, there's one person Tripathi is unable to share his success with: his father.

“My dad would have been happy to see [my success] but he passed away in 2017 (...) He would have been very happy,” said Tripathi.

Photos: PBE Media