“Recognition is a reward in itself. Any form of appreciation, even a small word, is important.”
“With all due respect, I don’t think that having eight-pack abs or 21-inch biceps matter.”
“’Broken’ is a story of two broken people coming together. I think every one of us can associate with it, as we all have faced a heartbreak sometime in our life.”
“I have seen ups and downs. When my chips are down, I remind myself of the time when Aamir Khan spoke to me over the phone and praised my work in ‘Dil Dhadakne Do.’ What big a validation that is, someone of Aamir Khan’s stature to be initiating a call with someone like me. It’s a confidence boost!”
“It’s so cool to be trendy and be flooded with compliments.”
“I want to remove the curtain of pretence from all of my characters.”
“Anything that’s good and has a certain amount of quality, slowly but surely, it will be accepted.”
“All my characters are quite relatable, as they are flawed, true, and honest. All of us are flawed; nobody is pure and pious.”
“The I&B Ministry, at their own convenience, can’t pick and choose content in serials. We have weird commercials with a lot of objectionable content running on TV post 11 P.M., but nothing has been done to stop them?”
“We are sometimes so overawed by flamboyance and machismo that we forget to ask ourselves how we treat others.”
“’Lootera’ happened nearly 10 years after television. It was the first film I auditioned for.”
“From my experience, I can affirm that I don’t really know how the women see the world like, but it seems to be quite different from how men do.”
“I love playing the common man.”
“My hairdresser loves me because he gets the liberty to get creative with my hair.”
“I have always admired Mr. Naseeruddin Shah, Mr. Anupam Kher, the late Om Puri ji, and Amitabh Bachchan.”
“No person should become complacent by his/her work and think that he/she has done their best.”
“There is no one-size-fits-all process. It differs from character to character and priority to priority. Every project has a different priority, and you have to be agile enough physically as well as mentally to shift from one character to another. I think I am fairly decent in that.”
“I never thought the media would be interested in me – this is very surreal.”
“One thing is for sure: that women are far more compassionate, empathetic, sensitive, and emotional in comparison to men.”
“I would be lying if I would say that I never wanted to be a lead actor. But at the same time, I would say it’s a lot of responsibility also; it’s too much responsibility.”
“I always believed in curating content, and the only way to do in our country is by turning producer. So then, I thought, lets turn producer and see how it goes.”
“It feels really grateful, thankful, and happy when your work is appreciated.”
“I think what I look for in a script, it’s the relatability quotient that matters the most.”
“When people watch my movies and web series, I want them to either see themselves in those characters or something they can relate to.”
“Traveling is not just a pleasure, but it also gets you to meet so many people, experience new things in life and, in return, expand your horizon so much.”
“I don’t like repeating things and look out for work that could challenge me.”
“I don’t hover over the thought of only playing a protagonist.”
“If you do a brilliant work and if the audience don’t like it, what’s the point.”
“I don’t see midgets as abnormal people.”
“I’ll be honest and say that looks are important for me. But ultimately, it all boils down to how much a girl loves.”
“Had I not been in a relationship, I would have no issues falling in love with a midget. I wouldn’t mind as long as she loves me and takes care of me and my family.”
“Growing up with Koli boys is a different experience. It teaches you survival.”
“I was out with my friends when a casting agent came up and asked me if I was interested in acting.”
“I grew up watching English films and listening to The Doors and The Beatles.”
“Television has an unparalleled reach.”
“There is no denying that TV pays really well.”
“I agree when people say TV is regressive. I would go back to TV only for the money.”
“I was associated with Shaimak Davar for three and a half years and learnt a lot from him.”
“Unfortunately, my dancing skills never came to the fore, as I got involved in acting on television, where an actor doesn’t get too many opportunities to dance.”
“In 2008, while I was shooting a TV show, a woman came all the way from Odisha to Baroda to meet me. It turned out she was newly married; she said she had run away and wanted to marry me! We had to call the local police, and it turned out her family had filed a missing person’s report.”
“Every character has its priorities, its path, its trajectory. So you prepare differently for each.”
“We generally pretend to be something to survive in a society. So the characters I play, I want them to be wholesome characters. They are not necessarily the most wise people, but they do have a heart and soul.”
“As an actor, it’s important to feel for the character, as you will be watched by audience, and when you start feeling your character, you share a sense of happiness and achievement.”
“Those who talk to themselves are the truest actors.”
“I’ve hardly ever played urban characters.”
“I am proud to have played so many non-urban characters because I feel the heart of real India beats in the non-urban areas.”
“The MeToo movement has made everyone more professional. The trashy aspects of filmmaking are now eliminated. There is certainly fear and caution among those men who think they can get away with any behaviour. At the same time, we have to be careful about not overdoing the enthusiasm of the MeToo movement.”
“There is unlimited scope for a film to expand and grow on the Internet.”
“When I realised that TV would be my playground, I decided to be content with what I had. I gave it my all.”
“People have started consuming very privatised content. Initially, it used to be community viewing at the cinema, where you look forward to ice cream in the interval and then on to your dressing and dining rooms. Today, it’s gotten so privatised that you’re watching things on your mobile phone. That is a massive amount of change.”
“People ask me if I am going to leave TV, but my answer is a big ‘no.’”
“I just want people to respect me as an actor. Now, whether that makes me a star or not doesn’t really matter.”
“I will continue to do TV so long as I get to prove my acting prowess.”
“Every project I got, whether I was playing a friend or doing television, I just wanted to prove myself: every single take, cue, and rehearsal is an audition. That’s my approach.”
“It’s been a very long journey, and people have been immensely kind. They’re not tired of watching me on television for a decade; they want to see more of me.”
“I’m not a trained actor. I have neither read acting books nor gone to acting school. But I have certain fundamentals on how I approach a character; the basic skeleton of my preparation is based on observations from real life.”
“I’m really grateful to God for whatever I have.”
“I don’t consider Mumbai-Delhi as India. The grass-rooted diversity of U.P.-Bihar is the real India.”
“People loving my performances give me a kick.”
“I have a complaint with regressive shows. The kind of stories I want to be a part of are not happening. I can’t underutilise myself.”
“I have had over a dozen trips to Lucknow – for work or personal visits.”
“I did not have any roadmap for entering Bollywood.”
“I am glad that critics and filmmakers liked my work, and I have been warmly welcomed in Bollywood.”
“I always wanted to do acting, but I never knew that I would start at the age of 17.”
“The sets of ‘Lootera’ itself transport you to the 15th century, since everything was designed according to that era.”
“I reach on the sets ready to be moulded by the director and give my best shot.”
“’Rise’ is a fun web series but one that tackles the practical realities of our lives. It is a story that most of us experience in some or the other form, and that is what got me excited about the story.”
“’Criminal Justice’ is one of the most exciting projects I worked on, as it had a very unique storyline to explore.”
“As main protagonist, there’s so much that you have to prove.”
“Digital medium has a vaster reach, more than any other medium, as the content is watched globally in various countries at the same time.”
“As a TV actor, I was making money and spending it and always felt a certain void in terms of work.”
“I am someone who does not plan a lot. I go with the flow, and I just want people to know me as an actor.”
“’Lootera,’ though not commercially successful, was a beautiful film.”
“Like any other aspirational actor, I wanted to be a part of films.”
“In all pomposity and humility, I just wanted to show what I could do as an actor, and I jumped when ‘Lootera’ came my way.”
“It’s very important for actors to feel like a part of the puzzle and not the puzzle itself.”
“Whatever I have is because of the people who are watching me. I don’t have a PR agency, I don’t have a manager, and I don’t even have a professional portfolio. People who hire me are people who, just like the audience, have just seen me in a small role here or in an ad there.”
“I love experimenting with my hair.”
“The only competition I actually want is with my own self, and for me, work comes above all.”
“Everybody says that ‘Balika Vadhu’ is the best thing to have happened to me, but I pray for the strength to work hard.”
“Though I played a supporting role in ‘Lootera,’ I am mostly getting offers for leads.”
“I didn’t have to do much to get a role in ‘Lootera.’ I got my debut screen space in Bollywood after director Vikramaditya Motwane saw me in one of my serials.”
“I have never been of the opinion that I will only play the lead in a serial. For me, just the role needs to be good.”
“I can’t do too many things at one time.”
“I don’t dance anymore. Though I have been approached several times by these dance reality shows to be a part of them, I simply refused them, as, to be honest, I am a very lazy person.”
“Anil Kapoor is fantastic. Words fall short to see his determination.”
“I have had my share of relationships and broken hearts, so there has been a proper balance in life.”
“Sometimes you are heartbroken, and sometimes you don’t treat others well. I think it’s a generic occurrence with all of us. Everyone has such experiences. I also had my share of ups and downs and broken moments.”
“Like every actor, I am always on the lookout for interesting characters.”
“I love working with women directors because of their emotional functionality and can undeniably connect with them on a fairly personal level.”
“I might have added zeros to my bank balance and followers to my Instagram account, but apart from that, I still lead a middle-class lifestyle.”
“I love talking to strangers and absorb their life experiences.”
“I can read Gujarati and speak some, too!”
“I think I have done my share of the saas-bahu dramas.”
“I am a very private person.”
“When I used to watch TV when I was young, it was a fun space which helped us relax and de-stress.”
“Everybody has a different goal and a way of planning his/her career.”
“Our society is full of hypocrites and irrational people.”
“I am an actor. It’s very unfair when people categorise and term me as a television actor or film actor.”
“I have always said that my inspiration is society, the world we live in.”
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