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  Entertainment   Bollywood  08 Sep 2017  Rode to redemption

Rode to redemption

THE ASIAN AGE. | PRATYUSH PATRA
Published : Sep 8, 2017, 1:42 am IST
Updated : Sep 8, 2017, 1:42 am IST

A huge star in the TV world, Gautam Rode is hoping to finally make a mark in B-town with his return to the big screen after a long hiatus.

Gautam Rode
 Gautam Rode

Gautam Rode is known for being an extremely popular TV star, but he has had few filmy outings, and none of them memorable. But with Aksar 2, he is hoping to announce his arrival all over again. The actor, talking about switching mediums, says, “The medium means little to me. I am fascinated by good roles. I have been doing TV non-stop for six years with shows of different genres. I always wanted to play something that I haven’t done before. When it came to films, I wasn’t being offered what I would have liked to do. When Aksar 2 was offered, my last TV show was getting over. So, the timing was perfect and the character was novel and challenging.”

Many actors like Sushant Singh Rajput and Karan Singh Grover have stayed away from TV after they left the industry but Gautam has no problems making a U-turn. He says, “If I get a good role in TV, I will immediately go back. I don’t think those stereotypes attached to different mediums exist any longer. Veterans like Amitabh Bachchan and Anil Kapoor are doing both films and TV  simultaneously. The only difference is the duration as TV consumes a lot of time but if you get a season-based show, why not? I will be happy to manage both.”     

Gautam

None of the films he has done previously did well enough to make Gautam a mainstay in Bollywood. Ask him if it is a monkey on his back to prove himself as 70mm material and he denies it, “I wasn’t known as an actor initially. My films didn’t click. Later, my TV shows turned out to be mega hits and made me a household name. I’m happy how my journey has panned out. Today actors come trained in acting, dancing etc. Unlike them, I’ve learnt everything on the sets. Even I don’t like my previous portrayals although I used to give 100 per cent then too just as I do today. The difference now is that I have lot more experience,” and adds, “I have seen lots of ups and downs. I keep my head firmly on my shoulder. I knew no one in this fraternity and I feel proud of what I have achieved. I never focussed on not having godfathers. For that matter, people with godfathers too have faced their own challenges. If your work is good, people will accept you.”

Lastly, about his love life in real life, Gautam smiles and says, “There is something happening. Please wait for sometime, I’ll tell the whole world who I’m in love with. Things are at a very early stage right now.”        

About Aksar 2, he clarifies a few things. “This film has nothing to do with Aksar. It’s a completely new film. And if the audience is coming to see smooches and sex scenes, one will be disappointed as the film is more about suspense and thriller than erotica,” the Suryaputra Karn actor says.

In the film, Gautam doesn’t even have a kissing scene and he doesn’t mind it either. Ask the actor with the chiselled bod if he decided to stay away from intimate scenes to please his TV audience that has seen him play only the ‘good guy’, and he rejects the conjecture, “About 20 per cent of fans didn’t like my sensuous portrayal. They said they were shocked to see me like this. I understand their thought process but I will never improve as an actor if I keep doing similar kinds of roles. Then the same people will one day say, ‘Yeh toh bas yahi kar sakta hai’. Moreover, I know that there is a certain line that I will not cross myself while doing intimate scenes. I follow my heart, not what others are saying.”

Tags: aksar 2, sushant singh rajput, gautam rode