You have done your MD. Why did you choose to become an actor?
I’m a licenced medical practitioner with a MD (Doctor of Medicine) in Ayurveda but I completed it for my parents’ sake. I always wanted to be an actor. My dad is an accomplished mathematician and he wanted me to have a steady career. As expected, both of them were tense when I decided to move to Mumbai in 1999 to participate in a talent hunt show. However, my ultimate dream was to get into National School of Drama (NSD).

Do you think there’s a certain level of barrier in Bollywood when it comes to actors from north?
The situation is far better now, especially for those who arrive from Delhi and the Punjab belt. But the same can’t be said about those who belong to UP and Bihar.u00a0Ironically, language becomes an issue because most of these actors aren’t fluent in English. The script and dialogues are written in English although the film is made in Hindi. But then, that’s how things are and it’s incumbent on the newcomers to get their basics right.