Interview--Diwakar Pundir

It's surprising to see you play the old man in Santaan. Ready for character roles already? (Laughs) Hey, in the initial episodes I'm a young guy. It's only after a few months that I will start to age. It's a role that spans a lifetime. I'd had my fill of candy floss and was beginning to feel typecast. That's why I grabbed Santaan which has a more perform- ance-oriented character. The story is about the generation gap between parents and their grow- ing children, seen through the eyes of my character. You rarely get a chance to play a role like this on tel- evision. It's a story that you see unfold in almost every other home. That's right, particularly in middle and lower middle-class homes since this patriarch is a Gandhian. He's struggled to make a living but never compromised on his principles. Only to have his children question him on his stillborn journey later. It's a show with great connectivity. You're no longer seen in Parrivar? Oh, that role has ended for me. There were date issues. Date issues? Well yes, I'm juggling three shows. There's Raavan in which I play Ram. That goes off air in a month's time, but immediately after I start anoth- er show on Zee. Hum Tum, being pro- duced by Milind Soman, is set in the film industry. I'm not the hero, but it's a noticeable character. I love the fact that I can experi- ment with so many different roles on television. The only thing is that you have to sacrifice on your sleep because you're working crazy hours. You've not been seen in any Balaji shows after Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii. Any prob- lem on that front? Only one.. money Balaji being in the . position it is in today, doesn't feel the need to pay the actors initially That's . why I didn't last long in Kahaani… Also, Balaji shows are all gloss. If you're looking for something with more substance, you have to look elsewhere. I didn't want to stagnate. Now that you're doing TV 24x 7 is it bye bye to films? I did about eight films. Some didn't work and some never made it to the theatres. Even though they were off- beat stuff I wish they had at least been released. I'm really disappoint- ed about Do Aur Do Paanch. It starred Salman Khan! Why are these films stuck? No buyers? (Shrugs) Who knows? I'm not the kind of guy who calls and keeps tabs. Some of the producers told me their side of the story. It made perfect sense. (Sighs) The only thing to do is immerse yourself in work because if you sit around thinking about what could have happened and didn't, you'd feel more frustrated.