Article--I refuse to die..

You really rave and rant on Mere Apne.. (Laughs) Yeah, I'm the angry young man of the show. I love it. The TRPs aren't encouraging, though The TRPs aren't picking up but the critical appreciation keeps us going. It will probably take a while to pick up because 9X is still new. You've always been a Balaji Telefilms loyalist.. how's it working with Uragya Productions? Their working style is more or less similar to Balaji's except for the fact that Uragya's is a lot more system- atic. At Balaji, the scripts took their time coming, so we could never have a bank of episodes. You're not to be seen in the 'K' shows anymore.. why? I was offered the lead in one of their soaps. I backed out because the character pops it after a few episodes. I've already died twice. I refuse to die in another Balaji show! You tried playing the baddie in Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki.. did that work? I took on that role because I wanted to change my image. But the viewers couldn't accept me as a bad man.. they'd rather have me playing good boy. Guess that explains why Kajjal was a disaster too.. No, Kajjal didn't do well to begin with. Even the chan- nel wasn't faring too well at that point. Have you been able to shake off Piyush (Kahiin toh Hoga)? (Laughs) No he's still with me. Even today, when I take up a new role, they say, "Piyush is now playing XYZ." I doubt if anyone knows my real name. Do you consciously keep a low profile? I'm just very laid-back. I don't make an effort to meet people. That's a major drawback. Fortunately, I keep getting good work. Don't you aspire to join the movies? Yes, I'm all set to make the jump but I have no intentions of quitting TV. Another three years down the line and I'll be playing daddy and granddaddy on the tube. I'd like to continue doing other roles too. You've never been linked with anyone from the industry. That's right. Even though, ironically, I was dating someone from the industry. It didn't work out.