This story is from March 17, 2008

I'm not a crazy man: Aditya Pancholi

TNN / Mar 17, 2008, 00:00 IST

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Aditya Pancholi talks to TOI about what kept him off the big screen for so long.

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Aditya (TOi Photo)He has shed his past the way he has shed his weight.
Looking every bit suave and sexy now is Aditya Pancholi. ��Yes I have shed almost 15 kilos and rightly said, I��ve also shed my past. I��m looking forward to the future now,�� says the light-eyed actor as he settles down for a quick chat.
So is the 15 kg lighter Aditya also one of the contenders for the six-pack abs? ��Oh no, I��m not.

I��m more into yoga and jogging. I want to look slim and trim for the movies that I will be doing,�� says the actor who has just completed shooting for his upcoming film Striker with director Chandan Arora.
After such a long hiatus, what got him back in front of the camera? ��I had my personal reasons for not doing films. I was busy with my business and also kind of got distracted with other things! It��s been a really long time that I��ve not taken acting seriously. But I guess once an actor, always an actor. I had to come back and now I want to give it my all,�� says the charged-up actor.

Besides getting a lean look, he has also gone in for hair transplant. ��And unlike the other actors, I��m not ashamed to admit that. I was losing hair and for an actor, his hair is very important and besides I feel very uncomfortable in a wig,�� says Aditya.
In real life as in reel life, he has always been portrayed as this arrogant, hot headed guy. ��I think people got carried away with negative characters I played on screen. I must have been so convincing that they really believed I��m a bad guy in real life too,�� he jokes but adds on a serious note, ��I am not a difficult person to be with. It��s a myth that Aditya is arrogant and short tempered. I��m not a crazy guy,�� he says trying to clear the image people have conceive about him.

��The problem was that I was taking everything lying down. My attitude was ��Kya farq padta hai. Let people talk��. I think my PR skills were bad. I never went to clarify anything and let people talk. I have done more than 100 movies and have worked with the same directors over and over again. If I was bad, they wouldn��t have signed me again,�� he justifies his point.
But will he return as the negative, angry young man on screen again? ��Yes in this film I play a ruthless character.�� He started off as a lead actor, then went on to play the brother or the friend of the actor and then shifted to playing negative roles. Was he happy with the way his career graph moved?
��I think I must have been one of the first actors to have started this trend of playing negative roles after playing the lead. But whatever work I��ve done, has had some substance in it. Even today when I step out, people remember me as Nawab from Aatish or for my role in Yes Boss,�� he says proudly.
His professional life is on an upswing but what about his personal life? Haven��t any of the stories circulating about him affected his equation with his wife? ��She is my best friend and will be my wife for the rest of my life. I love her a lot. Zarina is the best thing that has happened to me. After God and my parents, it is Zarina I love and respect the most,�� he says almost confessing his undying love for her.
And his children, is the father paving the path for them in the industry? ��No I��m not, they��ll have to do it on their own. Zarina guides Sana and as far as my son Suraj is concerned he is only 17 years old and it��s too early to think about films.��
Now when he sits and ponders about his past, does he have any regrets? ��There��s no point crying over spilt milk. Earlier I was very wild and it reflected on my career. I��ve matured a lot. Now I know
how to be a part of the industry,�� he says confidently and signs off.

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