Which has been your most memorable compliment?
The most memorable comment came from a renowned film personality (I won’t name him) who after seeing The Namesake said, ‘Please go and thank your parents for giving you birth.’

What are your future projects?
Dil Kabaddi, inspired by a Woody Allen film, provides another perspective to lives in a metro city. It has a very Indian soul and explores the function of morality in the mind of an urban married man. How does one cope with fantasies in spite of being happily married? How do couples cope with sexual tensions in a metro which provides ample opportunities for a man and a woman to succumb to their desires? Then, in Billo Barber, I play the protagonist—a multi-faceted character whom some see as honest and others as a liar. He is poor but not bogged down by poverty. He goes about his calling of a barber in a small town till a star lands there to shoot and changes his life.

How was it working with director Priyadarshan and producer /co-actor Shah Rukh Khan in Billo Barber?
Shah Rukh is a very efficient producer who understands marketing very well. That’s why, I guess, it’s easier for him to produce films. He really pampers his actors. As a co-actor, you never notice his stardom as he heeds every command of the director. Since Priyan writes his own stories, his characters are grounded and close to real life. As a director, he is focused and rigid about what he wants from an actor. You have to be alert to know what’s playing in his mind. He doesn’t take actors’ improvisations.

... contd.