Now that Aaliya is married to Zain and has moved to Mumbai, what happens to the family in Bhopal?
The show will continue to have the Bhopal family on the track. It will be shown how the family misses Aaliya. This marriage has happened due to Ghulam’s will, so all the time he will think of his daughter and imagine how happy would Aaliya be in Barkat Villa. Also, it will be interesting to see that Aaliya’s reality will not be known to the parents. Ghulam is living in a balloon that his daughter is very happy.
Initially, we played a lot with the contrast of two families – the one in Bhopal is a simple family ‘paiso se amir nahi but dil se bahut amir hai’ and the other one in Mumbai is materialistic ‘paiso ke amir par dil se garib’. This comparison has added to the charm of the show.
What is the USP of the show?
I think it’s the writer Farhan Salaruddin. He has been really good at creating nice aspects of the story. The way he has given distinct part to every character of the show has made the show popular in such a short span of time.
How is your bonding with Beintehaa team?
It’s really a good team. I have a nice bonding with everyone. I am fond of the new kids Preetika Rao and Harshad Arora. However, I have known Suchitra, Naved and Riva for a long time. In all, it’s a nice team. I am enjoying doing the show.
What do you like about your character Ghulam?
I am biased towards what I do. I took the show because it is on Colors and being a part of this channel was tempting. About Ghulam, I would say he is a simple and pure-hearted man. There is no malice he is full of love for his people, for his family. I have always played characters which have angst or grey shades. But everyone has a good side to them as well and here I am getting to show the good side of a man.
You have been an actor for more than 20 years, what kind of change do you see in the TV industry
Yes, industry has changed a lot and luckily I have been able to rise with those changes. The full-fledged TV started when private channels came in 1993. That time, the concentration was on the script. There were just four people – writer, director, cameraman and actor — who would create a show. Now, we have bigger teams who create a show. The whole aspect of making a show has changed. Initially, script was everything but now the emphasis is more on how to promote the show. The focus has changed to promoting and marketing of the show and lots of money is involved as well.
I am lucky that I am getting work; I still don’t have a publicist. But today, an actor is all about how good their branding and PR is!
What do you do in your free time?
I am totally a family person; I love spending time with my family.
Do you have a dream role?
Though I have done every kind of role in the career span of 20 years still I am hungry for different roles. I would like to play the role of a maniac – a person who is totally mad and still has something to say about his life even in that state of madness.
Another role that I would like to play is that of a serial killer who just goes around killing people and is clever enough not to get caught. These are two roles that I would really love to play.