Looks don't matter to Shreyas Talpade

Shreyas Talpade, who'll next be seen in Om Shant Om, Aggar and Dil, Dostietc., tells Diganta Guha that he's happy that he never had to compromise on his looks.

Iqbal

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is history and Shreyas Talpade is now a star in his own right. From the deaf and dumb village guy whose dream it was to make it big as a cricketer in his debut to a film with Shah Rukh Khan (Farah Khan’s

Om Shanti Om

), this Marathi actor is on a roll.

But he is modesty personified, when we chat.

“God has been kind and I have been fortunate to have done different genres with some of my favourite directors,” says Shreyas who has Ananth Mahadevan’s

Aggar (

where he plays a psychiatrist) hitting theatres today. The road was tough since many wondered whether he could fit into the masala format. He himself was aware of it.

“But Subhash Ghai gave me

Apna Sapna Money Money

and Nagesh Kukunoor gave me

Dor.

These two put me in a different bracket.

Om Shanti Om

happened after

Dor

and

Apna

…,” he says.

He is quite at ease dancing around trees, which he is doing aplenty in Kukunoor’s first masala film,

Bombay To Bangkok

.

“It’s become routine for me now and I am quite comfortable with it,” adds Shreyas, who also has films like Manish Tiwary’s

Dil, Dosti, Etc

, Shyam Benegal’s untitled comedy and Sangeeth Sivan’s next (for which he was shooting when we caught up with him).

Om Shanti Om

is one of the most awaited films this year and here he rubs shoulders with none other than King Khan and Shreyas gushes, “I never thought it would happen so early. SRK, apart from being a wonderful actor, is a genuine person. And that makes a lot of difference. I could openly ask him things and the energy with which he adds to a scene and looks for improvement is amazing. In fact, Farah told me you would never find a more generous actor than SRK. He still has the same passion as that of a newcomer. He is a superstar who is completely grounded.”

And despite all the shooting schedules Shreyas ia also producing a Marathi film. “Thanks to Subhash Ghai I got into it. He told me ‘when the opportunity knocks, grab it. I am there with you, so go ahead and do it.’ And here I go.”

Shreyas is happening and happy that he hasn’t had to compromise on looks (he still has the same boy-next-door features).

“Well, it’s the director’s call. What is important to me is the body language,” he says.