How has life been after New York?
The response to New York has been extremely encouraging. People have shown a lot of love and affection and have taken up to Omar's character really well. Life has been much better and different after New York. Also some amount of seriousness has come into me after the release.

Are you nervous about Jail?
I never get nervous. Why should a man get nervous about something that he worked so hard for?

You have done four intense films. Are you consciously choosing such roles?
Not really. I love character-oriented roles. For me, it is very important to make sure that the character is really strong. Like I always mention it is not the length of the role but the strength that matters. I have just followed that instinct and gone ahead. Each film is different from the other.

Did you have to do any special preparations for your character in Jail?
Actually most of the groundwork was done by my director Madhur Bhandarkar himself. He had extensively researched on the topic and he gave me a huge file before I left for New York. He gave me documentaries and DVDs that he had downloaded from the archives. I studied the character in that sense but I really didn't want to prepare for Parag, the character. Parag could be anybody. The more I prepared for him, the more mechanical he would look on screen. I wanted to naturally develop and go through his psyche. 80 per cent of the population is disconnected with the word ‘jail’ and they always think that jail can't happen to them. I was one of them and because of that we do not know what happens behind bars. If I had made up my mind to prepare the character in a particular way I might have gone completely wrong, so I wanted to take an approach which was real and live the character. That is why the film was shot chronologically. It helped me maintain that continuity. I have taken up method acting and the approach was different.

Was it easy relating to Parag?
Everyone can relate to Parag in a way because he is a common man. I have so many friends who work for corporate companies, have a 9 to 5 job and are happy in their lives. But for the scenes inside the jail, I took it as something that could happen to me. I put myself in that position and reacted in a way I would have in real life.

How was the experience of visiting jails and interacting with prisoners?
I did a complete run through of what happens behind bars. Not only did I see movies that were related to jails but also visited a lot of them. Thane jail especially gave me an insight of what life behind the four walls is. That was interesting and scary in a way. But that was the trigger-point of Parag for me.

There are quite a few explicit scenes in the film. Weren't you apprehensive while doing them?
Not at all. If there was some apprehension, I wouldn't have been able to do the film at all. The day I signed the film I decided that I would do all that it takes to do the role convincingly. Moreover, I completely trusted Madhur's instincts.

Would you have done the scenes had it been some other director?
I don't think any other director would be able to present Parag as strongly as Madhur did. I was most convinced doing those scenes with a man like Madhur. I don't think I would have been able to do it with another director. So yes, I did it because Madhur was directing it.

How did your parents react to those scenes?
Well, they are aware of everything because it's all in the papers. In fact my mother read one of the articles and reacted pretty strongly. But now they have understood that these things are a part and parcel of the profession I am in. It's not like my father doesn't understand technicalities. He has been an assistant to Hrishikesh Mukherjee and knows how the industry works.

Jail is not exactly a commercial film. Won't you be losing out on a lot of audience?
I don't think Jail is a niche film at all. There cannot be a more commercial film than Jail. I hate segregating a film, because for me a film is a film. Jail is one such topical film that everybody wants to see because there are so many questions in their heads that will be answered once they see the film.

Do you think the audience is ready for such films?
The audience is 110 per cent ready. Everyone is bored of the same old stuff being shown; they are harrowed out of their brains. They need a change too and I am sure they will appreciate Jail.

What do you think of Mugdha Godse's performance?
Mugdha is a darling. She is a great person and has acted brilliantly in the film. Mansi Pandit, her character, is really strong and I think the film will really do a lot for Mugdha.

Madhur is known to be a serious person. How was your experience of working with him?
Madhur is very intimidating as a person because his brand name is so big and strong. But what I discovered is that he is so relaxed, jovial and totally unlike the aura he has. He is a damn good actor and a great mimic and can imitate any actor really well.

How would you view Jail as a film in your career?
Jail has definitely been the most challenging role that I have portrayed on screen until now. Simply because it is easy for an actor to pretend on screen but it's very difficult to live a normal life on screen and to make people believe in that. The process was very real.

Do you think you have improved as an actor after Jail?
I hope people say that. I can't be pompous and indulge in self-praise. I can't rate myself, I'd rather people rate me.

What have you taken back from Parag Dixit, your character in the film?
I have started loving life more. I have become more responsible towards myself. I believe that it is very important that a man gets responsibility and maturity. A certain amount of maturity has come into me after playing Parag and it feels good.

Any specific incident that you would like to share with us?
I clearly remember when I met these six prisoners at a jail. All of them had been just sentenced for life and they were just walking in. There was a certain calmness on their faces that was rather scary. I think they had given up on hope and the scariest part is when a man gives up hope.