Fans of actor Rohit Saraf couldn't contain their excitement when they watched the teaser of Shashank Khaitan's new romantic comedy Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari. Rohit was given proper Dharma hero entry treatment, when he walked out, in slow motion, in front of a black chopper, dressed in all-black no less. His fans took to the internet to express pride for Rohit's journey and how the Mismatched actor had now bagged his first Dharma movie. But in an exclusive interview with SCREEN, Rohit clarifies that Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari isn't his first film backed by Karan Johar's Dharma Productions. "My debut was actually with Dharma," he says. Rohit was 18 years old when he played Alia Bhatt's younger brother in Gauri Shinde's 2016 coming-of-age film Dear Zindagi, which was co-produced by Dharma Productions, Shinde and R Balki's Hope Productions, and Shah Rukh Khan's Red Chillies Entertainment. "I remember each day on set. It was very special an experience because I absolutely love Alia as an actor. She's absolutely incredible. For me, it was an exciting project to be a part of because of the sheer people attached to it. I had the best time shooting. One of the most striking things I remember from the set is Gauri Shinde ma'am saying, 'I want to adopt Rohit,'" recalls the actor. The only unfulfilled wish for him was shooting with Shah Rukh, who played Alia's therapist in the film. "That never happened. But I did get a picture with him at the cast and crew screening. So, I was very happy about that," says Rohit, smiling. It's eerie then that with his entry shot in Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari, Rohit pays homage to one of the most iconic entry shots in a Dharma movie - Shah Rukh Khan running from the chopper towards the Raichand mansion in Karan Johar's 2001 blockbuster family drama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. "Everything else around me also added to the moment and made me look so confident. It's not every day you walk out from a chopper looking like that, wearing those kind of clothes," says Rohit, modestly adding, "Sorry, I'm literally just only walking. So, I wouldn't say it takes a different kind of muscle. I do think I was very lucky that Dharma put up this very expensive shot." But his co-star in the film, Sanya Malhotra, disagrees and chimes in, "But you're walking so well! That's an incredible shot. There's so much confidence, and you look so good! Very modest of him to say that, but he's incredible, not just in that scene, but also in the film and all the songs." Interestingly, though they have been a part of Anurag Basu's 2020 romantic drama Ludo on Netflix India before, Sanya and Rohit's journey of collaboration also kicked off with a song. Last year, immediately after they'd signed Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari, Rohit reached out to Sanya to collab with him on a dance reel of "Soni Soni," a track from his first film as a lead actor, Ishq Vishk Rebound. "We hadn't started shooting for the film. I reached out to her because I absolutely love the way she dances. It was very important for me to promote that film because it was a first for me. She instantly said yes. It was amazing," recalls Rohit. "And we were done in less than an hour, inclusive of him showing me all the choreography," adds Sanya. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Sanya Malhotra (@sanyamalhotra_) Also Read - ‘Varun Dhawan bullied me, Janhvi Kapoor the biggest schemer on planet’: jokes Rohit Saraf; Varun claims, ‘they put fake scorpions in my room’ But is there another song now that they'd like to collaborate on? "The one from Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari that's not released yet. It's called 'Ishq Manzoor.' I think it'll release soon after the film releases. It's one of our favourite songs. It's also one of the songs that we shot together first," they say. They also promise to give what the internet wants - a collab on another reel dancing to "Bijuria," the rehashed version of Sonu Nigam's classic track, which features only the leads Varun Dhawan and Janhvi Kapoor.
