Ask Sonu Sood, who shot to instant stardom almost overnight, thanks to his role in Ashutosh Gowariker’s Jodhaa Akbar. “I was privileged to have worked with one of the best filmmakers in the country. Ashutosh gave me a role to die for,” confesses Sonu.
An electronic engineer by vocation, Sonu felt he would be a “misfit” in a blue-collar job and chose to be an actor instead. So, one fine morning he arrived in Mumbai, like thousands of other starry-eyed film aspirants, and got set to struggle.
“You need to have the conviction and confidence that things will work out for you. You just can’t give up. Even when the chips were down, I never lost hope. I spent nine years of slogging it out before I started getting the kind of roles where I would be noticed,” he says.
When Aashiq Banaya Apne and Yuva did not take him places, he chose to give Tamil and Telugu films a shot. “Well, it was a matter of survival. I had to do something to run my kitchen. However, besides the money, I could hone my skills as an actor and grew professionally,” he says.
Predictably, Sonu’s movie career seems to be looking up now. In his kitty are films like Vipul Shah’s Singh is Kinng, Rajshri films’ Ek Vivah Aisa bhi and UTV’s Dhoondte Reh Jaoge with Soha Ali Khan. In fact, he’s even known to have struck a good rapport with Akshay Kumar on the sets of Singh is Kinng.
He gushes, “Singh is Kinng is a lovely comedy and I am very excited to have done this film. I don’t believe any of those rumours about Akshay Kumar editing other people’s roles in films. It is an honour to work with senior actors like him. At the end of it, everyone wants the film they have worked in to do well. I do the same and leave the rest to God.”
A bit of PR exercise and marketing oneself goes a long way in getting the right kind of attention admits the actor. “Sure you have to market yourself, and meet the right people at the right time. But you need to be hard working and talented as well,” feels Sonu. And no television for him either. “Your work is at the disposal of the person holding the remote. That’s a scary thought,” he laughs.
Once the grease paint comes off, Sonu likes to strum notes on his guitar and sweat it out at gyms. But, no late night parties for him. “I want to focus my energies on films. I want to be remembered as an actor who can do justice to a variety of roles,” he says on a parting note.
Wise words, we must say!
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