I do feel responsible for the fim, says Shekhar Ravjiani

It’s not until Neerja’s trailer was out, that people came to know of Shekhar Ravjiani’s stint as an actor. The musician and singer had kept his Bollywood debut well under wraps. But he clarifies that it isn’t a full-fledged part. “My role is just a cameo in the film. I play Sonam’s love interest,” says the actor who admits he took on the role for a friend — director Ram Madhvani. “Ram is a very old friend of mine from advertising. He had told me that it’s a brief role. I respect him a lot, so when he offered me this role, I told him, ‘If you were to ask me to be a statue in the garden, I’d do that too’. I couldn’t say no to Ram,” he says.

Shekhar admittedly enjoyed the look on people’s faces when they saw him on screen. “When the promo came out, I realised that people were excited to see me. They were like, ‘was that Shekhar ’ I realised that excitement. So there was a little buzz in the industry and on social media. Till the first article came out, no one knew.”

A music composer, singer and now an actor, Shekhar is enjoying adding feathers to his cap. “Let’s say I am exploring. I enjoyed the process of shooting for six days for Neerja. This acting thing came my way,” he says adding that he is also starting a publication company of his own.

Was he nervous to face the camera Apparently not. “I wasn’t stressed at all. It was actually a vacation for me. Every single day was a learning experience. I wasn’t stressed about my looks or lines and just went with the flow and enjoyed every bit of it. The days I shot and the time that I sang for the film — Gehra Ishq — all this was a beautiful journey. Ram has actually made me a closer part of the film — whether it’s discussing other songs or the background score. Even though I don’t play a big part in the film, I feel responsible for it. I am one of the extended family members of the film.”

Coming back to his bouquet of talent, why acting “Why not acting Music is an expression like painting and so is acting. It’s an extended art form and if something comes to you and there’s a certain connection in your heart, then why not It can be anything. Tomorrow I might just paint a picture and exhibit it on a big platform. I never wanted to be an actor, but since 2007 (after being on reality shows) a lot of people saw the potential in me and I started getting offers. Filmmakers probably thought that he will make a good actor or may be he is a good-looking guy. I said no all along because I felt that if I do it, then I will do something really special.”

Speaking of all things special, Shekhar has a fan — a rather dedicated one — who ensures every now and then that he is pampered. “It’s beautiful. I have a fan called Mahrukh who is the first to re-tweet my tweets. No disrespect to the other fans, but she is the first person to like or comment on my posts. Painting is a hobby for her, so she paints my pictures and on my birthday, and sends me about 4-5 canvas portraits of me. From the looks of it, each one might have taken more than a year. I have more than 25-30 paintings from her in my house so far.”