In Neil's words
On his Diwali Mischiefs
"We used to collect chemical from the bombs and fill it in the matchboxes after which we would light it inside the garbage bins kept on the streets".
The last time you laughed really hard
"At times while shooting there are some moments when you just can't suppress your urge to laugh. Recently while shooting for Ramayan, we were ready and standing on our respective marks. The shot was about to start and suddenly the tail of one of the actors playing a vaanar in our show fell off just before the shot. He didn't realise it and started with his lines. Before we could say anything, we all started laughing. Even after others stopped laughing I couldn't stop myself. Fortunately, for me it was a wide shot so nobody realised it."
Your guilty pleasure
Chocolates. I think it's a very common guilty pleasure. Ideally I shouldn't be eating a lot of chocolates for fitness reasons but I end up having a lot of them.
A holiday you'll never forget I will not forget my holiday in Goa last year. Actually, I love that place so I think whenever I go there I shall love it more.
If I woke up one morning and discovered I was a woman' I would do woman-oriented roles (laughs). Maybe! I will act according to the situation.
One thing about you that nobody knows.
I'm an open book. There's nothing hidden about me. (Suddenly remembers) But ya, I guess that few people really know that I've also been an athlete. I've won accolades at the Inter- state level as well.
How can your fans make their workout fun?
Exercise will be fun if you are dedicated towards it. Many people just join a gym but don't attend regularly, which is pointless. Think about the kind of body you will achieve if you workout regularly and motivate yourself to exercise. You can also take your I-pod along to the gym so that you don't feel bored while working out.
Share some fitness tips that you follow.
The most important tip is, go to bed early and make sure you get eight hours of sleep. Stay away from smoking and drinking. It is a misconception that smoking and drinking relieves tension, just avoid it.
The teacher you were always scared of?
When I was in 6th Std, I was really scared of my Maths teacher
Any childhood memory related to mangoes?
I come from Baroda and remember that my neighbour had this huge garden with a mango tree in it. Being the mango freak that I am, I and my friends used to sneak into the garden to steal mangoes from the tree. I can't forget how irritated my neighbour would be whenever he caught us.
What happened the first time you got drunk?
I am very health conscious, and hence its a no to drinking and smoking for me.
You were into choreography before entering the field of acting. What made you choose choreography?I started dancing before getting into choreography and I was inspired from my sister Shikha. She was learning classical dancing and she used to perform on stage. I used to go along with her for the shows and then one day I thought that why can't I dance like her! One day on the occasion of Teacher's day in my school, me and one of my friend decided to perform. We performed on Humraaz's song 'Bardaasht' for our Teacher's and got a very good response. I was in Std., 9Th that time and it was the first time that I had performed on stage in front of all. That is when dancing became the passion of my life. When I stepped into college I got a chance to choreograph for my college festival and we won it. Since then I started taking choreography seriously and I won awards for dance in many festivals like Yuva, Malhar, Mood I, etc.
And how did acting happen to you?
While doing choreography, I realized that this is the field I should be in. My parents encouraged me to try out acting so I thought about it. I always wanted to be an actor and the response of the people even motivated me to get into the field of acting. So, in 2006 I started giving auditions for Ads, Television and Films. In 2008 I bagged a role in Arslaan which was my Television debut on Sony.
You love martial arts. When did you get into this art form and why?
Being a dancer, I have always been attracted to all these things which are related to physical exercise. I have learned gymnastics for 4 years in my childhood days and I have also been a Karate student. I have recently developed a keen interest towards Capoeira (a martial art form) and learnt it from Baba Capoeira specialist. I feel quite lucky that I got trained by the only trainer in India who went to Israel and learnt this art form for 14 yrs then he returned back to India to spread this art over here. I got to learn a lot from him and after Ramayan; I wish to continue learning this art from him.
Does knowing martial arts help you with your battle scenes in Ramyan?
Yes, it does! We did so many scenes without using a harness. So, it helps having knowledge of the body physics which is about knowing the angles of landing while jumping and all. Having knowledge of martial arts, I got to know about the body physics as well. The kicks and stunts become more effective if one knows martial arts. When I was in my 11th Std., I used to injure myself while trying out martial arts. I used to practice it on my bed and sometimes the bed also used to break. Being a choreographer, I used to learn it all by myself so that I could teach someone else. So, I continued doing it on my own and got injured and broke many beds. Now, I know how to do a stunt as I have gained a lot of knowledge by doing so. I have even choreographed many fight sequences for my shows including Ramayan.
What are your future plans about dance? Would you like to take part in any dance reality show?
After Ramayan, I would like to take part in dance reality shows. I would love to be a part of 'Jhalak Dikhla Jaa : Dancing with the Stars' and 'Nach Baliye'. I am a trained hip-hop dancer with inputs from International choreographers.
On a Surprise Visit by fans
"Recently while I was shooting for Ramayan, I was pleasantly surprised to meet a family that came all the way from Orissa just to catch a glimpse of me performing.They were so thrilled and happy that I can't explain in words. The grandfather of the family even went on to say that he feels satisfied in life now that he has met one the Gods he believes in."...such is our belief in our TV gods..!!
Something you have been longing to do or learn
I've been really longing to learn the ancient martial art form kalaripayattu and how to play the flute. With God's grace, I hope that I will start learning soon.
One past incident that you would like to change
None. I don't think anyone wants to change anything in their past because that would change them as a person.
The last time you cried your heart out
I don't cry a lot in my personal life but I've cried my heart out for my scenes. (laughs)
Unlike most TV actors who look at the big screen for acting projects, Neil Bhatt is keen on directing a Bollywood film.
It's not that he doesn't want to act in films, "I do look forward to doing more television, but finally I would love to do films. I want to do films where we are not just aping the south or west," said Neil,
How is Neil in real life?
In real life I am a very simple person and don't like complications. I am a hardworking person. I am not saying this just to praise myself, but many people have told me about this. I am a choreographer as well. That's it about me
"My original profession is choreography. In fact I have done choreography in college. I am in the fourth year. I am originally from Baroda but I have been brought up in Mumbai."
Your ultimate strength?
I think it's my will power that keeps me strong.
Like every actor I also went for auditions worked very hard on every character and then one day I got a call from Sagar productions for a show in 2006 but that didn't click.
But as per my destiny after two long years I got a call from the same production house for my first serial on Sony TV called 'Arslaan'. The casting director then told me that he remembered me from the previous auditions but then he thought of me to be raw in my acting skills that required some polishing and so I was rejected for the role of young Prithvi in the serial Prithvi Raj Chauhan earlier.
Yes, I had always desired to be an actor .Also I was so much involved in extracurricular activities that acting had to be the natural outcome. But I took up LAW coz it's my family business and I wanted to have something to bank upon in my career.
What are your career plans?
I want to see myself as a director so I'm working towards it. But that does not mean I'm leaving acting it's just a wish which I want to see being fulfilled.
Neil concedes that acting is inborn but yet admits that he did join Namit Kapoor's Acting School to learn the technical aspects of acting, because as he puts it succinctly, "If you do not have the talent, no one on this earth can teach you how to act.
About Acting and Gulaal
For me, my finest work, where I grew as an actor and also blossomed was Gulaal. This provided me the perfect platform where I groomed myself and got to know different aspects of acting. Though Gulaal was one very good show, but somewhere it lacked in terms of marketing and was not able to sell itself much. So, many audiences were unaware of its concept. Being in this industry, I just want that somewhere our Indian television should innovate more. The same old melodrama has taken over the screen which at times maligns the image of Indian culture. I wish that Indian television is also accepted worldwide like international shows.
Edited by nneeiill - 11 years ago
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