"Physically, I am supposed to be 27, but it doesn't help because I am still stopped at bars and at adult films all the time." Actually Cyrus' problem lies in his beard, on the lack of it. "This is a three-week old stuble, you see," he says ruefully, pointing to the scanty growth on his face.

But on the flip side, you age much slower than everybody else, right?

Sure, but you also get no respect." Cyrus remembers the time when he went to a New York bar with a couple of Indian friends who were much younger than him. "One of them was even shorter than me. And they only stopped me! I protested and made a big speech. Of course, nobody listened -- they were busy pushing past me to get in."

Is that why he was happiest inside his mother's womb?

Yes, and he was in no hurry to get out. "It's the best part of a man's life -- being inside a woman. Anyway, even when you get out, you want women to take care of you."

But now that he's out and all that, does he have a woman in hislife?

Sure, he does. His girlfriend Ayesha is currently re-learning photography in the US. "So, I am definitely looking for girls till December, which is when she comes back." Anyone listening?

Ok, so who is the real Cyrus Broacha?

"Oh, I'll always go for big. He's this really tough guy who's 6' 6'' with a thick growth." Beard again. "You might think I am fabricating all this, and then may be I am." Ha, ha!

A compulsive liar?

Kind of. "We had a party at our acting studio in New York, where I met these two oldish ladies." And what do you know? Cyrus merrily told them that he was an Iraqi refugee who ran through Afghanistan and Pakistan to finally end up in India. "I even told one of them that I'd killed a man, and believe me, she bought the whole story. She was so happy with this exotic little brown man. Being a total American, she of course couldn't tell one country from another."

Wait a minute, what was this MTV veejay doing at acting school?

Cyrus is a born actor, sohe only went to school to polish his skills. "Actually if I hadn't become an actor, I might have been a lawyer -- which is basically the same thing." So he even did a year at Government Law College, and a year in advertising, before packing off to New York.

Hang on, weren't we talking about MTV? Where did advertising come in

"I joined D'Cunha Advertising during my Law College days." He thinks it was a great experience because he didn't really have to work. "As a junior copywriter, you are so enthusiastic in the first week that you give in a 170 articles and 4000 options." By the second week he realised that they weren't interested in what you do, because they already know what they want. "By your third week in advertising, you become cynical. All you have to do is come up with one copy, or correct copy or copy."

Ok, ok, but how about MTV?

"After I came back, I landed a job with Channel [V] in Hong Kong." Hey, hey, watch your step, MTV did you say? "No, no Channel [V]. But I didn't likeHong Kong and asked them to let me come back. Then MTV called me and Made In India

happened." And to think, becoming a veejay on a music channel was the last thing on his mind. "I don't watch music channels because I am not into contemporary music, I like really old stuff. But yes, the fun element that MTV stands for is just up my street."

So, what is Cyrus' brief for his three shows, Made In India, MTV-U and True Lies?

"I think the channel hired me because they liked my American attitude more than anything else -- cheeky, irreverent, silly." And that's exactly the format he sticks to. Someone even called him `The Raja Of Rubbish'. "It may not have been a compliment, but I like it. I'm even planning to get a T-shirt made on the same phrase. You've gotta belong to something, I belong to rubbish and I enjoy it."

But then, where does serious theatre and his new play Unfaithful fit into all this?

Theatre has always been his first love. "I've done at least oneplay a year from 1985 to 1996." He even wrote a play called Powertics for Savvy magazine a few years ago. "Theatre gives you a community-like feel -- you make friends, enemies, fall in love, somebody has an abortion and somebody gets hurt."

So, what does he do in Unfaithful?

He plays a ruffian philosopher called Toni. "He's a dirty guy from Brooklyn who has no respect for anybody, carries a gun and shoots people." But you find later that he's probably a more sensitive person. "The original play is called Faithful, but our producer decided to call it Unfaithful. May be, he thought that has a better ring to it." Or perhaps he thought the title would lure audiences to the theatre.

And where does he go from here?

Cyrus has it all worked out. "I want to take over MTV and I've spoken to Sunil Lulla about it. He's promised me that when he becomes 60, he'll give me the company, which means I'll be 40-something then. I've also told him that I'll abuse all theprivileges and live up to my name."

So, what is the future MTV president most likely to say?

"No!" Cyrus loves saying `no'. "I hate working and getting up. I just like existing. So `no' is my favourite word in the whole world. I've been travelling so much that I am already tired for the next two years."

And least likely to say?

"No twice. Because two negatives make a positive, so it means `yes'."