The Maachis actor would probably have been an Army officer if destiny had not landed him in films.
Birthday: December 3, 1970
Place of birth: Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh
School/college: St. Francis’ College, Lucknow and Punjab Public School, Nabha. Graduation from Bikram College of Commerce, Patiala
First break: Maachish (1996)
Low point of your life: When I lost my mother
High point of your life: My first film Maachis and when I became a father
Currently I am: Wrapping up the shoot of Punjabi film Jindua and working on Tom, Dick & Harry – Part 2. Also, I am waiting for Yea Toh Two Much Ho Gayaa.
What would you have been if you weren’t an actor?
I would have been an army officer. I always wanted to join the Armed Forces, right from my school days.
One thing about you that not many people know.
Back in 1989, I met with a bike accident, and hurt myself in a rather peculiar manner. I was riding at just 10 km per hour when another vehicle hit me. But I didn’t get hurt because of the impact of the accident. I broke a few bones because a friend of mine, who was really huge, fell on top of me!
You are quite popular in Punjab...
I do Punjabi films for the emotional connect with the audience. I love shooting in the north; the food, the winter…everything!
A Punjabi film of yours that should be dubbed in Hindi and English?
Jindua… It’s a different kind of love story.
A person you idolise: Shaheed Bhagat Singh Ji.
One actor whom you admire the most: Irrfan Khan. He is my favourite actor.
Who is the fittest actor in Bollywood?
Akshay Kumar. He’s extremely disciplined and genuinely fit!
According to you, who is the most attractive actress in Bollywood today?
Deepika Padukone.
And the most intelligent one?
To know if a person is intelligent, you need to spend some time with that person. I really haven’t done that, so can’t say!
What about Hollywood? Who do you find hot?
Jennifer Lawrence.
Which is your favourite colour?
White. At any given time, my wardrobe would have around 40 to 50 white T-shirts.
Who is the sexiest female co-star on your contact list?
I am lucky to have worked with all of them. It’s another thing that most of them leave me in the films and run away.
If you could invite five people for dinner, who would you call?
I’d invite Raju Hirani, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi and Abhijat Joshi – and then maybe convince them to produce Munna Bhai 3.
What’s your poison?
Black coffee.
One thing that’s on your lust list.
I am an impulsive shopper. I would like to own a Ferrari someday.
What’s your favourite dating app?
I am not into apps. In fact, I’m still trying to figure out Facebook.
One movie in the last three months that you absolutely loved:
Happy Bhag Jayegi, because of the feel-good factor. You come out of the theatre feeling refreshed.
And one movie that you hated...
Being an actor, I can’t afford to hate any film.
My favourites:
Film: American History X (1998)
Actor: Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt
Quote: Let’s go our separate ways, together
Film I acted in: Yahaan (2005)
From HT Brunch,October 9, 2016
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Read: Happy Bhaag Jayegi may have a sequel
Read: Maachis helped me choose better films: Jimmy Sheirgill
