"I had auditioned for Kyunki...and Kasturi"

From the current crop of fresh faces in the television industry, there are a select few who seem promising. And Sharad Malhotra, the protagonist of Zee's Banu Main Teri Dulhan is one of them. He is already being talked about for his boyish charm and noteworthy performance as the dyslexic Sagar in his maiden show. Here's an up, close and personal interview with this actor who is also the zonal winner of Zee Cinestar Ki Khoj 2004 from Kolkatta. Wasn't it a big risk to take up the role of a mentally retarded Sagar, who behaves like an eight year old, for your debut show? I was too scared to take up the role thinking what if it did not click in my favour. Had it been not successful it would have been difficult for me to get new roles. So I took the opinion of my family members and few friends who mattered and they advised me to accept the challenge. Sagar's characterization and your performance are being compared to that of Varun Badola in Koshish Ek Asha. Comment. I am too small an actor to be compared to Varun Badola. He is an amazing actor. I take it as a compliment. Co-incidentally during Zee Cinestar… in Calcutta Varunji was the anchor. Any home work done by you to get into the character? Before the show rolled I did spend time with my building kids and have also visited a nursery, but just for a day. I have observed children carefully. I also got hold some kid's flick like Koi Mil Gaya, Mein Aisa Hi Hoon and Honey I Shrunk The Kids. The producers Neelima Bajpai and Shyam Bhattacharya have been very encouraging. Before the shoot they guided me to attend Jaydev Hathagdi's (Rohini Hathagdi's husband) acting workshop. Above that Mr. Raj Israni who's my business manager and his wife Anita Israni encouraged as well and pushed me to deliver my best. You must be receiving an amazing response from the kids? Yes. Whenever kids visit my sets, they approach me for a handshake. They think that even in real life I am just eight years old! Recently when we were shooting at R Mall more than 100 kids surrounded me and each time I tried to talk to them they would run away. (laughs) How is the atmosphere on the sets? Initially everyone was quite and aloof but with the passage of time things have changed. Now we all are like a family. I am still very enthusiastic but schedules are unavoidably hectic and take 12 -14 hours daily. What kind of a rapport do you share with your co-star Divyanka Tripati? I am very comfortable with her. We both participated in the Zee Cinestar.... and we are friends since then. She is an intelligent actress. We both work on our scenes and the result shows in our performance. Do you relate to saas bahu shows? I am happy that my show is not a saas bahu kind. Before I entered the industry I used to watch Kahiin Toh Hoga and Kyunki … The surprise element provided by them was interesting. Right now I only love to watch my show but don't get time to do so. Have you been approached by Balaji for any show? Yes. I had auditioned for a role in Kyunki…as well as Kasturi and was short-listed too. But I can't take any offer as I'm commited to Dulhan…for almost 22-24 days of a month. I would like to meet Ekta Kapoor and work with Balaji Telefilms if given an opportunity. Any aspirations for Bollywood too? For time being, no, but films is definitely my ultimate goal! So I'm using this period to learn a lot in terms of acting! Let's talk about your personal life - your family? My father is an architect and mother's a housewife. My elder sister Reema Pawa is married and is a well-known designer in Calcutta. Are you seeing anyone? I am just 24 year old. I have a couple of years to go now before I settle down and get married. I am very much single and want to remain so for a long time. Describe your ideal woman? She should be simple and should be able to adjust to my hectic shoot schedules. I belong to a middle class family and want a down-to-earth girl and not a hi-fi one!