After Mere Dad Ki Maruti, Saquib Saleem will now be seen in Karan Johar’s Bombay Talkies. The actor shared that he will look forward to play an interesting character rather than running after the lead role
Since last few months he was training himself to be absolutely careless, wannabe and loser. Saquib Saleem hanged out with the bangle seller in Amritsar and stayed in Chandigarh to just roam around and do nothing. Thankfully, all his efforts paid off and his second film, Mere Dad Ki Maruti, managed to do a good business and entertain people. “It is really heartening to know that people are loving the film, which was a simple story, had a bit of everything — romance, humour and drama — and didn’t have any big stars as a lead pair to attract the audience, except Ram Kapoor. It shows that people want something different,” said Saquib, whose first film was Mujhse Fraandship Karoge, who doesn’t believe in love.
“I was 22 then and similar offers kept pouring. I understand that one gets roles as per one’s age and experience in the industry but I didn’t want to settle for anything, just for the heck of it. I was looking forward to do something different and when I read the script of Mere Dad Ki Maruti, I was immediately ready. I had to be someone different than what I am. I was asked by the director Ashima Chibber to lose weight as the brief given to me was that the son and the father, in the movie, has to be completely opposite of one another. If one is healthy, the other has to be lanky. Their point of view and every thing has to be different. So I had to adopt a different style of walking, talking and I spent extra time in Chandigarh to observe the youngsters there and their lives. Eighty per cent of the film was shot in the city,” added Saquib, who is a Delhi boy and while he was here, he was modelling and contributing a bit to his dad’s restaurant business. “I was doing a lot of things together and was not thinking actually. I was just enjoying life that way. I went to Mumbai, not to be an actor, but due to certain other reasons. I was lucky that the first offer I got was from Yash Raj Films and when you get to work under such a big brand, you really don’t think much,” he shared.
Saquib says that he is completely a director’s actor and that is how he has survived two movies so far, without any professional training in acting. “I just follow my director and do as I am told to. We were a part of some workshops and I did my own homework to get into the skin of the character. But apart from that I so far have not taken any help for acting,” said the actor, who is honest to admit that he is enjoying the fame and after the success of his second film, there are many offers coming. “But I want to choose carefully. I am working in Bombay Talkies next and I feature in the part that Karan Johar has directed. I don’t want plenty of work or take up roles just to be busy. I am interested in doing meaty stuff that will help me grow in the industry the right way,” he ended.