I am a loner:Shaleen Bhanot

Shaleen Bhanot plays a villain, but says he's anything but that in real life. He is a loner and isn't looking for anyone special either.

Clad in a blue kurta and jeans, a stole around his neck, kohl lining his eyes and a you-can't-miss-it red tika on his forehead, Shaleen Bhanot looks every bit the villain. And he's proud of it, because he's taking his new role very seriously. He's playing the villain in Star Plus's new show, but is quick to clarify that in real life, he's anything but a villain.

From a business family in Jabalpur, this 24-year-old had never even watched movies or serials very seriously. He shifted away from his family to stay and work on his own, and that's how he stumbled into acting.

"I was in Mumbai for a deal that got postponed indefinitely," he recounts. "With a lot of time in hand and bikes being my passion, I decided to give a shot to a reality show that offered me the chance to travel on a bike. That got me a lot of attention and I then started getting a lot of offers. All the people I spoke to told me how great this profession would be and I then thought, why not! I got 40-50 DVDs and sat down to watch them. So I gave it a try and have been doing a role in Kajal for some time. Then this project came along and here I am," he says, with a smile on his face.

Shaleen says he's extremely chilled out as a person, but that doesn't mean that anything goes. He smokes, but refused to be clicked with a cigarette in his hand, saying, "This not the kind of image I want the young to imbibe. I smoke, and it's not a great thing. I wouldn't want this to look like a style statement. Believe me, it is not!"

Even in other matters, Shaleen insists that he has simple tastes. "I am a loner and love staying alone," he says. "I have simple tastes€ A plain jeans and t-shirt is what you will normally find me wearing. The one thing that I love is biking. But these days, I don't get to go biking often," he rues.

So he's young, handsome and a loner.. From all the female attention he gets, has he found someone for himself? "No, not yet. I don't have anyone special in my life and I am not looking for anyone either. When the time is right, she will happen. As I told you, I am a loner," he says with that serene smile again.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Entertainment/TV_Buzz/I_a m_a_lonerShaleen_Bhanot/articleshow/2315904.cms