“Soham is not the best with narration but when I read the script, I really liked it,” says the young actor. Luck is his first film this year. He matches acting skills with Shruti Haasan (a friend from school) and an ensemble cast that includes Mithun Chakraborty, Ravi Kissan, Chitrashi Rawat, Danny Denzongpa and Sanjay Dutt. Here, the actor details his adventures and experiences in showbiz.

You swam with sharks for Luck— were you not worried about turning into shark food?

There is a scene where all of us are handcuffed inside the cage deep down in the sea with real sharks all around us. To me it wasn’t scary, because right at the outset they told us that sharks are not scary. Most have never seen a human being in their lives - and when they see one, they don’t think of food, which is turtles and fish. Ever so often, people have been bitten by sharks but that’s because from underneath where the sharks are, a human being swimming can look like a seal. They eat seals and therefore the attacks, but in any case they don’t like the taste so they will spit you out. It’s another matter that most don’t survive a shark bite because of trauma and bleeding. Their intent is never to eat people. Before we did the sequence, I just went down and swum with the sharks to make myself comfortable. All of us had to undergo a deep-sea-diving course for Luck.

There’s also a bit of skydiving?

Well yes, I just jumped off the plane but that bit with the ‘chute opening out was done by a stuntman as I hadn’t trained for it but I intend learning it soon enough. I love adventure sports. I am done with action for now. My body still hurts.

Which are the action films that you like watching?

I loved Jackie Chan films. Two things I loved about him - first that he did everything himself, which engages you so much more. Second, that he doesn’t take himself too seriously — there is always an element of humour and fun that is nice. He’ll do a fight scene, but there no hatred or anger so it’s a sense of real fun.

So are you the good or the bad guy in the film?

I play an ambiguous guy!

How was it working with Shruti? The fact that you are friends-did it make the job easier?

There are pros and cons to it, like we have an inherent, in-built comfort level. The con for me is that there is a tendency to be embarrassed if it’s a romantic scene or something, I feel that she will be able to see through it. It’s one of the things you have to ignore and bluster your way through. But creating an illusion of being someone you are not is what being an actor is about.

What did you think of her as an actor?

She’s so not a Hindi film heroine. She doesn’t have those adayein or the bubbly girl- next- door feel that everybody loves. She’s got real guts and amazing confidence… Shruti is cut from a different cloth; she looks different and is completely unapologetic about it. I think she can carve out a real cool niche for herself in the industry. She has done a damn good job.

Also, do you think industry kids have it easy, if for nothing else then merely in terms of familiarity with the process of filmmaking?

We Indian like dynasties, don’t we? We are really big on it. In other countries the family thing is not so widespread in films. Here I think audiences have a certain comfort level if they can relate to you as the son of some star. The audience reaches out more, which counts for something. Having said that for every star-son or star-daughter who has made it there are two who have not. But yes, the know-how does help.

How true are reports of you having a problem with Sanjay Dutt?

They are entirely untrue. We get along just fine.

What about your choice of roles - two action flicks and another romcom in the pipeline-would you consider films with a difference?

I would like to reach a wider audience.

If anything I could get typecast as an offbeat film type. I have a sneaky feeling that nobody watches crossover films in India. Even NRIs prefer to watch a proper Bollywood film. Delhi Belly is a hatke film. It’s in English and a comedy with a difference but I can’t really talk about it. The Dharma Productions’ film with Sonam is a classic date movie.

There’s also Seven Days In Paris opposite Katrina?

The heroine is not finalised, neither is the script. Nothing is final as yet. Everybody started talking about it too early. I just expressed an interest in the movie because I liked the story and that’s it! The producers have approached Katrina - she has to read the script yet.

Are Ranbir Kapoor and you coming together in a film? And there are reports of starting a production house too!

No. There have been suggestions, but nothing concrete so far. As for the production house, it was a conversation about actors turning producers and before you know it, we are supposed to be starting one!

It is said that you are very choosy. Comment.

There is this strange conception that I am very selective, whereas I am doing as much work as my contemporaries Ranbir Kapoor or Harman Baweja. Ranbir came about a year before me and with Luck, I have more releases than both of them, so I don’t know where this comes from.

Besides Aamir, who are the Bollywood actors/directors you admire?

Irrfan Khan - Namesake was a revelation for me. I admire Abhay Deol a lot. He, more than any other, is a guy who’s doing what he wants to exactly the way he wants to. He is doing very interesting work like a road movie and I am curious to see how it turns out. Everybody else is making compromises somewhere or the other.

I like Anurag Kashyap. Anurag and I go way back - he’s been trying to sabotage my acting career for years. He keeps saying ‘Tu traitor hai, gaddaar hai - come to this (film direction) side.’ Much to Anurag’s dismay, I am enjoying this stint as an actor — direction will have to wait a long time.

And stars?

Aamir, Shah Rukh, Akshay and Hrithik of course-he could be just sitting on a chair but he’d still be worth watching.

You are known to be accessible to even first-time makers, newcomers without a background of filmmaking - do you actually read all of them?

I don’t accept a script unless I have time to read it. My number is out there and I always reply to people who message me about scripts. It might take me a while but I try to be honest about it.

Does stardom prevent you from keeping a personal-professional balance?