| Akaashdeep Sehgal is back with a bang. He's all set to play a positive character in Ekta Kapoor's new serial. Here he shares his experiences with A.L. Chougule. Q It's for the first time that you are playing a positive lead character in a serial. What's your role like in Kuch Is Tarah?
I am playing Ranbir Nanda in the show, which is not a saas-bahu drama at all. Ekta is trying to make something different from what people have seen in recent times and I am really happy about playing the lead role. Ranbir is a finicky character. He is rich and happy about making money and running a family. For him marriage can wait. Q Ranbir hates marriage and doesn't like the sight of couples in love. What makes him so negative about love and marriage?
I guess it's because he is too busy making money and setting up a business empire and therefore has no time for love and marriage. Since he is preoccupied with work, everything else can wait in his case. That's why he also doesn't like the sight of people falling in love or gets bitter seeing them in love. Q Does he have a past which makes him bitter about love and marriage?
I don't know the character in detail as yet because a lot of work is still to be done on it. The character is being fleshed out and I am confident that it will shape up very well. But Ranbir is not a negative character. He is finicky but a positive guy. Q Since Kuch Is Tarah is a different show, will it steer clear from the normal soapish elements?
Right now it is being treated and made like a completely different show. But then TV is TV and a soap is a soap. It is a writer's medium and it is entirely up to the writers and producer to stick to the original idea. A lot depends on the ratings as well. But I know for sure what Ekta and the show's creative head Prashant Bhatt are doing. A certain kind of entertainment prevailed on television in the last seven years because there were takers for it. The ratings are the proof. Kuch Is Tarah is a nice show. The story and dialogues are interesting and different. Q Why did it take you six years to move from negative to positive character?
I think it's because Ansh worked very well for me. Television has had an unusual effect on me. Ansh changed my life for good in terms of popularity, money, recognition, respect and exposure to my talent. It's been an extraordinary experience. I won three awards for the role. I was looking for an opportunity to break away from the negative slot which came my way when I got Kuch Is Tarah. Q Has Eklavya got his due place in the story of Kyunki?
Well, Eklavya is still there and he gets his due as and when the story demands. Kyunki is a story of several characters. There are too many lead characters and each character comes into prominence and slips into background as the story moves because the writers have to be fair to every character. Q Between Ansh and Eklavya, which character you enjoyed playing the most?
Obviously it is Ansh. Eklavya is too well-mannered and well-behaved. But Ansh was wicked and wild. Ekta gave me the role and it changed my life for good. Q Is that the reason why you are loyal to Balaji?
I think loyalty comes from respect for someone. Ekta has proved that she is the czarina of television. I work with full sincerity for Balaji and haven't had time to work for any other banner except for Ketan Mehta when I did his Time Bomb while on a break from Kyunki. Q What's your take on the new general entertainment channels entering the cable galaxy? Do you think competition will help improve quality of programming?
I think new opportunities will open for everyone. There will be lot of work for everyone and more new faces will join television. But there will also be lot of variety for viewers. They will have a choice to either watch saas-bahu shows or something else of their choice on another channel because each channel will try to be different from the other. Q Why are you still single? Like Ranbir do you also like to stay away from marriage?
I have had my share of relationships. I don't think I am ready for marriage. Or rather the time is not right for marriage. My mom is not in a hurry to get me married. If she can wait for her daughter-in-law, I can also wait for a wife. I would like to achieve a lot of things in life and make good money so that my wife can live like a princess. Q What happened to the children's educational film that you were making?
Ahsaas is 90 per cent complete. It's a small and non-Bollywood kind of film. But I have kept the film on hold because right now I am working on another script. I want to make my directorial debut on a bigger scale. www.deccan.com | 
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