•NAMRATA SHARMA ZAKARIA: Do you see yourself as an MP soon? If the party demands more time, will you abandon acting?

Yes, I propose to work and continue doing what the party wants me to. It’s really up to the party. If it wants me to be an MP, I will take it up. For me, the party comes first. As a politician, I deal with people’s lives. And that’s a very serious, responsible role. I can’t play with their sentiments; I cannot make them feel short-changed.

•SUDIPTO SHOME: What do you think about the Raj Thackeray controversy?

I think it was a direct reflection of the incompetence of the state Government. Vilasrao Deshmukh is busy protecting his own seat. If the state Government sleeps over these inflammatory issues, how can they be resolved?

•LALITHA SRINIVASAN: You are an actor, politician and producer. What next?

I wanted to be an investigative journalist; that didn’t happen. I wanted to be an air hostess; that didn’t happen either. So I figured that plans don’t always materialise. To tell you the truth, I just plan for my kids: their time-tables, holidays and so on. As far as I go, I take one day at a time. I never plan.

•RAHUL SHIRSATH: Although your serial Viruddh was critically acclaimed, it wasn’t commercially successful.

Sony TV is known for its reality shows. In the soap category, Viruddh was the one with the highest TRPs. It got eight awards for excellence. At a time when so many shows came and went, Viruddh stood out. It helped me carve out a place as a producer, and more importantly, as a writer. But after a while, the channel wanted to take it on a very ‘soapy’ track and I put my foot down. I didn’t want to compromise.

... contd.