Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Live
I want to see myself on big screen
Actor and host Shaleen Malhotra, who got success and critical appreciation for his show Arjun, was on a break from fiction though his anchoring stint kept him visible on TV. He believes that it’s better to wait instead of taking up things that you don’t like to do. The actor, who started as an MTV Roadies contestant way back in 2006, was in the city of nawabs for the promotions of his new finite series that will go on air this week.
Talking to HT City about his break from TV, he says, “You can’t call it a complete break or a hiatus as I was anchoring shows like Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya and Code Red Talaash. But yes I had drifted from regular shows. The reason was simple, I wanted to do finite series with a scriptbound character. Also, I did not like the scripts being offered to me.” Talking about the commercialisation of reality shows, Malhotra says, “I remember when I took up Roadies, it was mainly for the adventure quotient that the show offered. Most youngsters wanted to do such shows because of that and not for making a career out of it. But many find reality shows an easy way to make it to this industry. All are busy pretending as someone they are not and so the quality has suffered and success rate has gone down drastically. I mean you can see it for yourself: be it Ayushmann Khurrana, Rannvijay Singh, Bani J, Ashutosh, Shaleen Bhanot, all are from same reality show and have managed to carve a niche for themselves in the industry today.”
A foodie at heart who believes in flexible exercising routines, he says that his latest paranormal thriller Koi Laut Ke Aaya Hai has given him his dream role to play, “Getting to play an army officer is a dream come true.
A lot of people wanted me to pair up with Surbhi Jyoti (the female lead) earlier too but nothing worked out at that time. So everything seemed to fit in seamlessly. I am glad that I am part of such a magnificent cast. Then the best part is I’m getting to juggle with emotions, romance, and then action,” says Malhotra. On acting in films, the VJ keeps it clear. “Who doesn’t want to do films? If I say I don’t I will be lying! I want to do films and see myself on 70 mm screen but the story and character should be meaty enough for me to take it up. It’s better to do a good TV role instead of doing a bad film that people would love to forget. And then I’m just 28, so I have time on my side and I can afford to wait for a good film.”