'You'll have a barrage of me in 2001!'

Kanchana Suggu

His hair was gelled back. Clad in a black business suit and wearing non-rimmed spectacles, he looked every inch the poewrful tycoon.

He was on the sets of Kasoor at the time. It was a courtroom scene with Lisa Ray playing a lawyer and Aftab Shivdasani a 30something business tycoon.

In the scorching heat, Aftab's professionalism was evident as he okays his shots with ease. And then he turns and looks at you with an open expression, "Ask me whatever you want."

Fame does weird things to people. It changes them drastically and more often than not, for the worse. You need to meet Aftab to dispel all such notions. If anything, his self-deprecating humour and open candour are hint enough.

He had an ideal launch with Mast but it didn't propel him to superstardom. But he is far from disillusioned. "I don’t know what went wrong with it (Mast). It just didn’t click with the audiences I suppose. But I took it in my stride. It's very easy to get complacent in this line but this has made me more determined."

But after the debacle of Mast, will he be working with Ramgopal Varma again? "Of course, I am. In Jackpot -- being directed by E Nivas."

Post Mast? "Oh, I got many offers but none were worth it. I didn't want to do just any role. I was waiting for the proper roles," he states.

"Most of my films are romantic comedies. Maybe it's my face -- people only want me for young romantic roles. Thankfully, in Kasoor, I play a 30-something business tycoon and the role is very challenging and different."

So how did it feel working with the beautiful Lisa Ray? Most people would give up their hands and legs to work with her. "Great! It was great. We've developed quite a good rapport with each other."

What about his other costars like Amisha Patel? "Amisha and I knew each other even before we joined films so we are quite comfortable with each other."

Esha Deol is another actress he is costarring with. And you are reminded about the rumours that Hema Malini wanted Aftab replaced by another actor. "Even I had heard something of the kind. But I never believe the press! Nothing of this sort has been told to me. And as far as I know, I am the hero of the film."

Boney Kapoor, for his part, stuck to his decision and Aftab is after all playing the romantic lead opposite Esha. "It's a pleasant romantic film. The role is interesting and the character sounded really nice to me. Vinay Shukla is a very talented director and that was one of the reasons that attracted me."

Incidentally, Boney Kapoor and Aftab go back a long way. The association has its genesis when Aftab first appeared as the dimple-cheeked, bespectacled boy in Shekhar Kapur's blockbuster, Mr India. The film was produced by Boney.

But Aftab's foray on the silver screen didn't stop with Mr India. Soon, he featured in Chaalbaaz and has always been in the public eye. "I have been a model for the last 16 years."

Most child artistes fail to recreate that magic once they grow up. "It would be unfair to generalise it that way. I definitely hope to be in the category of the successful child artiste-turned-adult artistes!"

Popular he might be among the female population for his cutesy looks, but Aftab has a different gameplan in store: "It's too soon for me to be able to decide but I actually want to try my hand at action. Action has always interested me and I want do many action films."

Essentially from a non-filmi background, where does one place him when compared to the Hrithiks and Abhisheks? "Being a star son has its pros and cons. Sure, they get a good break in their first film and have a father figure to guide them throughout. But on the flip side, they are constantly compared to their parents and have to live up to a certain image. As for me, though I don't have someone guiding me, telling me what to do. I don't have to live up to the standards set by someone else.”

But doesn't the competition scare him? "I take competition in a positive sense. I think it is a good thing -- it brings out the best in you. Without competition, I would have become complacent and that would have affected my work."

Nowadays every new entry into films is heavily groomed. Most débutantes have self-admittedly undergone some classes or the other. But in Mast, we saw a very raw Aftab without any grooming whatsoever. "After I saw Mast, I realised I needed to work on my voice. So I underwent voice modulation classes, but that was only for three classes. Nothing else."

He leaves with a laughing promise, "2000 had no releases for Aftab... But a lot of shootings. The year 2001 will see at least five to six films of mine on the marquee. So suddenly you'll have a barrage of Aftab on the screen."

With inputs by Priyanka Bhattacharya