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Once
a charted accountant and now a television actor, Delhi boy Prashant
Chawla is one happy guy with his role in Zee TV's "Teen Bahuraaniyan"
gaining huge popularity. Prashant,
who won the best smile award at Grasim Mr. India, 2004, plays the
eldest son of a Gujarati family in the soap. He says he doesn't mind
being part of the female-centric story that revolves around three
girls.
"The real audiences are housewives. And they enjoy
watching empowerment of women. It makes them happy because they can
relate to it. That's why most of the serials are centred on women. It's
a fact and we can't run away from this fact," Prashant told IANS on
phone from Mumbai.
But the actor said he still fails to
relate to the character he plays as he comes from a different family
background. He hails from a family of bankers and chartered
accountants, but chose to pursue a career as an actor instead.
"I
can't relate to such things. I have never seen it. I don't come from
this kind of a family background where 20 people have dinner together
and cannot watch TV while dining. But as an actor I have to be
convincing in the role I play. So what I do is that I try to understand
the basic traits of my character and adapt it to the best of my
ability. And I like my character," said Prashant.
The role
played by him, which has shades of both comedy and romance, has become
very popular among female fans. But he is not happy with the marriage
of the character.
"After the marriage in the serial my
character has become too dependent on my wife Manjeet, and as a result
he does not come through as an independent character. There are more
emotional moments than romantic and that is why the audiences are
missing that chemistry between my co-star and me. Discussions are on
with the producer to put my character back on the track," Prashant
said.
The trial period of "Teen Bahuraaniyan" is over and Prashant is looking for more assignments.
"'Teen
Bahuraaniyan' is on for a few months and the shooting schedules are
comfortable. I can manage one more serial or a film role. I'm going
through the script but haven't decided on anything yet," said Prashant,
who also worked in "Tumhari Disha" and "Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka".
Though he nurtures big screen aspirations, Prashant doesn't believe that television is a stepping-stone to films.
"TV
is not a stepping stone. Serials are just a practical way of grooming
yourself. Here you are not trapped in an image. For example after
'Company', people refused to accept Vivek Oberoi in any other role. But
you don't face any such problems in the television industry.
"But
it doesn't open doors for you in films because lots of production
houses don't want to work with TV actors. It's a very practical
industry. If you are saleable, if people want to watch you for
two-and-a-half hours or you have the potential to draw crowds to
theatre, producers will cast you," said Prashant.
Before
moving to Mumbai the actor was into modelling and also underwent a
month's training under the supervision of Rita Ganguli, a professor at
the National School of Drama. He has also learned the art of mime and
movement from a French woman.
"Your training helps you when
you face the camera," said Prashant, who did his first ad film with
Nikhil Advani of "Kal Ho Naa Ho" fame.
"It was an ad for an ice cream with Saif Ali Khan."
So why didn't Advani cast you in his film?
"He
called me for a role in 'Salaam-e-Ishq'. After a couple of sittings he
felt that I am too young for the role. I think if a director of his
stature calls you for a role, that's an achievement in itself."
By Arpana, Indo-Asian News Service
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