No sibling rivalry for Mishkat

I get most compliments for my smile, although I think I have funny, rabbit- like teeth

ing, Shah Rukh Khan is my inspiration, as he is a selfmade man. Mihika was not the reason I wanted to be an actor. I was always passionate about it. I would probably be in the mental hospital by now, if I was not an actor.”

Mishkat adds that though she is much older to him, he is very protective about his sister. He says, “Once she had worn a really tiny pair of shorts and was all set to go for a party. I got very angry and told the family I would break the television set if she stepped out in those shorts. Mihika listened to me and changed her outfit.”

The actor rues about the fact that he does not get any free time to spend with family, thanks to his hectic shoot schedules. But he understands that it’s part of the package. “I honestly don’t want free time anymore. I’ve been free all my life. I want to work now.”

Currently APHG has a wedding track and Mishkat is preparing for an even more hectic s h o o t s c h e d u l e t h a n u s u a l . “Fans are waiting for me to get married and have children. It’s painful to shoot wedding sequences but we know that the audience loves them, so we have to do it. I’m just preparing for even longer shooting hours,” he signs off.

Mishkat Varma, the charming Raj of

Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya, is just getting used to all the compliments he has been receiving from his female fans. He admits the sudden attention is a little overwhelming. “My fans are constantly comparing me to Ranbir Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan. I get most compliments for my smile, although I think I have funny, rabbit- like teeth,” says the actor who credits his father for all the charm that he exudes. “I consider my father to be Superman. In school I was one of the stout kids with braces and glasses. My father enrolled me into a grooming class and of course, led by example. All that I am today is thanks to him.” So how did Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya come along, we ask him. “Director Rajan Shahi had seen me in ad films. He had liked me and had promised to cast me as the lead in his next show. He had neither a script nor a channel in mind at the time, so there was no concrete proposal. I didn’t hear from him for the next three months and was almost convinced that he had forgotten about me. But then I did get a call for a mock shoot and was finalised immediately after,” he says.

Incidentally, Mishkat’s older sister, Mihika stars in a rival show called Yeh Hai Mohabbatein on a rival channel. The actor tells us he makes it a point to watch her show as well. He says, “If I don’t watch her show I’ll be crucified; it works both ways. Though we work for rival shows, I know she wants my show to do well. I want her show to do well too. No matter how tired we are after the shoot, we have to watch each other’s show daily.”

Was Mihika an inspiration for him to get into acting? “I admire Mihika because she is hardworking. She would always top the class while I would fail. But when it comes to act-