MUMBAI: Ali Merchant is a well-known actor, anchor, DJ, and music producer.
He is best known for his roles in serials like Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai, Saat Phere: Saloni Ka Safar, Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat, and Vikram Betaal Ki Rahasya Gatha.
He was last seen in the reality show Lock Upp. He won the hearts of the audience, and all loved his game.
TellyChakkar got in touch with Ali and asked him about his character in Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai and if he received any hate comments when he played the show.
What preparation did you do to play a cop in your web series?
I had to speak haryanvi and I learnt from my manager who is a Punjabi then I had some friends who are officers I spend some time with them to understand their body language and I used to go to the police station and used to observe things and how they handle things and I understood what to do and what not to do. I had even put on weight for the role.
You were also a part of Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai. How was your experience working with Rajan Shahi?
Rajan Shahi he is created his own legacy with two shows which is very fantastic and I really look up to him and when I did Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai I never knew that the role would have been stretched so much and they would keep calling me for the role and it worked for three and a half year and he told me he wanted to present me in a different way and as an actor I got a challenging role and was excited to play it back then.
In Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai you played a grey character did the hateful comments reach you back then?
Yes, they used to reach me people used to ask me why my character rejected Hina Khan’s character (Akshara) and then they questioned me why I was interfering in their life and that time I thought I was getting popular and what are their problem and I used to feel that people used to think that that’s real and now I understand they were fans on the show.
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