Aslam Khan in Nayee Padosan

Courtesy: IndiaFM
Thursday, July 06, 2006
He is an active model and has been doing stage shows. Aslam Khan is not a new face in Bollywood. His first film was 'Nayee Padosan' where he played the character of Raja. His next film 'Iqraar - By Chance' will be releasing soon. This film also has comedy as an important ingredient. Looks like Aslam is another Govinda in the making.

What is your character in the forthcoming film Iqraar - By Chance?
I am playing the character of a bar tender who is in love with the daughter of the bar-owner. He really hates my guts and is totally against this match. Whenever the owner is around I keep dropping things and breaking them. He is quite fed up the clumsy me. But his behavior leads a lot of situational confusion and eventually he reconciles to our love. This film has two heroes. We shot a major part in London.

Without any filmy background, how difficult is to survive in film industry?
In any case there is lot of struggle in this industry even for a newcomer coming from film back ground. Nobody in this industry is doing charity, so why would they take you just because you happened to be related to somebody or the other. One has to work hard for getting into this industry and work still harder to stay around. I have had many offers but I am being a little careful. I don't want to get stuck with wrong kind of work and regret it later. I have not taken everything that comes my way.

You have been seen mostly in multi-starrers. How do you make your position safe?
First, I see how many scenes I have in the entire film. Minimum 10-15 scenes are essential to make me feel safe and give proper positioning. Overall, it also depends upon the story and the kind of impact it makes on you.

What is your criteria for choosing a film?
For me, artists, directors and producers are more important. Screenplay is also important. If the director is good then he can make a dud film look very good and bad directors can ruin the best of the setup of artists and screenplay.

So script is not important for you?
I think script is not the main issue. If stories are the only thing, then why do films with the best story line also flop? A newcomer wants a film and if newcomers start searching for a good script and ideas, then a decade will pass without them getting any films. This is dog eats dog industry and one has to fight for survival every Friday.

In most of your films, you are seen doing comedy roles? Do you like doing it or you get such offers because of your first film?
It's true that because of my first film people want to see me in comic roles only. I enjoy doing comic characters but I want to explore further. I really would like to do other genre of film making. Something like a Ram Gopal Varma type of film.

For doing comedy roles, are there any special preparation which you have to do?
For comedy, first I look at the character and scenes. One has to be sure of ones own standing in a setup, before delivering a character. Then accordingly, I make little preparation to give it the real feel. But comedy depends a lot on timing and your own reaction to the cue given by other artists. It has to be reflective of the situation. So I don't prepare too much, just the basic to understand the scene.

Any dream role, which you would like to play?
There are many dream roles of mine which I will really be interested in doing. One is Manoj Bajpai's character in Satya. Then I would love be in Aamir Khan's shoes in Rangeela or in Rang De Basanti. These roles had challenge and so many shades. I would love to play different shades of characters.

Was it your childhood wish to be an actor?
No, not at all. It was not at all my childhood dream to become an actor. Actually, I was a management student. People used to always tell me, ' Arre tu to itana handsome dikhata hai to yaha kya kar raha hai, tujhe to film industry mein hona chahiye'. Well handsome or not, one day it really struck me hard and I decided to try my luck in tinsel town. I don't regret the decision.

Which are your current projects?
Talks are on for many projects and two are finalized too. Still I would not like to talk about them until we are on the floors. And they are not necessarily comedy.

Who are your favorite Directors?
Many.....the list is very long. Let's see - Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Farhan Akhtar, Abbas-Mastaan, Ram Gopal Varma, Madhur Bhandarkar, Karan Johar and many more.

Your favorite Actresses?
There I am definite (Smiles). Madhuri Dixit and Rani Mukherjee.

Your favourite Actor?
Aamir Khan

Any girlfriend tucked away?
May be but I will talk about her at the right time. It is a very personal matter.

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