The Model,the Host & the Actor

Introduced to theatre at the young age of 10 years,Pandit showed an amazing aptitude for acting. He was also a part of the theatre group at Hindu College,Delhi,from where he passed out as an honours student in English in 2002. He then went on to perform at the famed Kamani Theatre. “Acting in front of the cultured audiences of Kamani was amazing – it gave me a sense of confidence,” he says. From there,he shifted to Mumbai to work as a radio jockey at a local radio station. “The stint in radio helped me improve my diction,” says Pandit. Describing the experience as a stepping stone to bigger things,he says,“Life has been full of challenges; I have made use of every stepping stone.”

His stint with the radio got him the opportunity to host the IPL show last season. “My career has had a lot of highs and lows. My big break of course was when I became the host for the IPL. People started recognising me on the streets! But the job was tough,” he says with a smile. “The constant relocation was hard to get used to,as were the long hours. Talking in front of a live camera is tough. You have to choose your words carefully,because there is no second take. In a way,the IPL trained me for acting in films,” he adds.

Before the shooting for Shaitan began,Pandit acted in Andrew Vasanth’s Tamil movie,Leelai,which is currently in post-production. “The shooting for Leelai had been completed around a year and a half ago,but because of the political scenario at the time,it got stuck at the editing table,” he says. “I think the movie will release very soon. So,in a span of two months,I’ll have two of my movies released in two different film industries,” he says.

As for working with Kashyap,Pandit has really enjoyed the experience. “He really knows how to take care of his actors,” he says,adding,“He knows how to choose his actors. We were all so like-minded and became good friends. Even Kalki is just like one of the guys.” And what of future plans? “I just want to sit back and see how my films do. Right now,after a long stretch of constant work,I’m completely free and am looking forward to the release of Shaitan on June 10,” he concludes.