There's
a
definite
design
to
demolish
Upen
Patel's
reputation.
And
Upen
knows
who's
behind
the
smearing
schemes.
"I'm
being
made
out
to
be
this
publicity
hungry
woman-eating
Casanova
with
nothing
better
to
do
than
chase
skirts.
I
know
exactly
who's
behind
these."
Apparently,
a
certain
section
of
the
industry
is
determined
to
hold
Upen
up
for
ridicule.
Off
the
record,
he
names
some
people
who
have
in
some
way
or
other
felt
slightly
threatened
or
rejected
by
the
actor.
"But
the
truth
is
I'm
not
here
to
take
up
a
panga
with
anyone.
I'm
accused
of
having
a
temper
problem.
Fine.
But
do
I
display
my
temper
unnecessarily?
I
got
into
a
situation
with
the
One
Two
Three
director
Ashwani
Dhir.
But
did
you
see
how
silly
I
looked
in
One
Two
Three,
especially
when
I
take
my
shirt
off
in
the
middle
of
a
song,
everyone
laughed
when
it
wasn't
meant
to
be
funny."
Upen
takes
a
deep
breath.
"I'm
accused
of
being
the
kiss-and-tell
type.
Will
anyone,
even
my
closest
friends,
be
able
to
claim
I've
shared
my
girlfriend
secrets
with
anyone?
I'm
not
that
kind
of
a
guy."
What
about
the
stories
of
Upen
whizzing
past
Mumbai's
fast
lanes
with
Tabu?
"Did
I
call
up
journalists
and
say
I'm
seeing
the
lady?
Did
I
plant
stories
of
our
friendship?
No!
The
next
thing
I
hear
Tabu
is
upset
with
me,
for
what?
What
have
I
done?
Or
Tanisha
Mukherjee
for
that
matter.
I've
been
shouting
from
rooftops
that
I'm
single.
Will
someone
please
listen
to
me?"
When
other
actors'
past
rare
its
head,
it's
often
an
ugly
occurrence,
but
Upen
Patel
feels
he's
being
hounded
for
a
perfectly
normal
past.
"The
latest
attempt
to
force
me
unnecessarily
into
a
corner
is
a
group
of
pictures
featuring
me
and
Deepika
Padukone
released
on
the
net
by
someone
who
has
nothing
better
to
do.
Now,
I'm
being
accused
of
leaking
out
those
pictures!
What
would
I
gain
by
doing
something
so
silly?
It's
not
as
if
they're
sleazy
pictures.
They're
part
of
mine
and
Deepika's
modelling
days.
We
shot
the
photo-spread
for
a
men's
magazine.
What's
wrong
with
that?
I've
shot
similar
pictures
with
other
model-friends
like
Yana
Gupta.
What
is
the
point
of
bringing
them
out?
If
they're
meant
to
embarrass
the
lady,
then
they
don't
work.
I'm
very
proud
of
my
modelling
days
and
all
that
I
did
back
then."
Upen
insists
he
knows
who
his
enemies
are.
"But
I
won't
give
them
the
pleasure
of
publicity
by
naming
them.
Neither
will
I
let
them
demoralise
me.
I
came
to
Mumbai
from
London
with
a
dream.
Today,
I've
made
a
place
for
myself
and
for
my
sister
whose
modelling
agency
is
doing
very
well.
I
will
make
it
big
without
being
a
star-son
or
having
godfathers
and
sugar
daddies
in
the
industry."
Story first published: Friday, April 18, 2008, 10:05 [IST]