First of Many: Gurmeet Choudhary revisits Kumkum

Gurmeet Choudhary, who landed in Mumbai as a teenager to pursue acting, began his showbiz journey as an extra. However, it was Star Plus show Kumkum that gave him a break in the TV industry. Kumkum ran between 2002-2009, and Gurmeet became a part of one of the tracks in 2003.

So how did he land the role? Here’s what the actor shared:

1. How did you land the role in Kumkum?

I gave my class 10th board exams and came to Mumbai. Here, I did my acting course. I was very young, and all I wanted to become was a movie hero. I used to meet every producer here. Since I had a good physique, I was mostly called for all the auditions. I started getting small junior artiste roles in several shows where I was supposed to stand in the background. After one such audition and look test, I got selected for Kumkum where Hussain Kuwajerwala and Juhi Parmar were my co-stars. I had maximum scenes with Hussain, who was a huge star back then. I played Ballu, a village goon. This was 2003. Though I was around 20, I got mature roles because I looked huge. So, to play such a powerful character was quite a challenge.

Kumkum was such a long-running show. I remember watching it in school. I used to love Hussain’s work. And then suddenly, after 4-5 years, working with the same team, in a track that was completely around me and Hussain, was surreal. Kumkum brought me in the limelight and I got noticed in the TV industry.

“@tama_lov_huju: ,@gurruchoudhary‘s Devil avtar in #Kumkum with @Hussainkk12 Gurmeet Debut In Khamoshiyan pic.twitter.com/1OVilLOK1U” Gc ji ;)♡♥

— Sona♥ Gurru♥ (@sona_rai) January 28, 2015

2. What do you remember of your first day on set?

In my first scene, I wore a T-shirt and goggles. When I arrived on the set in my character’s look, everyone got surprised as Ballu was opposite to the real me. We also shot a scene where I had to fake cry, sitting in a villager style with a ‘gamcha’.

3. Were you nervous? 

I never felt nervous. Of course, there was a fear of doing well before a take. That should always be there for an actor because that’s when you perform well. I always had confidence. My character was opposite to me in real life. When you are waiting for the right opportunity to do good work for 3-4 years, and then when you finally get to do it, you give your 100 per cent.

Also Read | First of Many: Gajraj Rao | Vivek Oberoi | Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub | Rajpal Yadav | Rajeev Khandelwal | Govind Namdev | Neena Gupta | Pankaj Tripathi | Satish Kaushik | Mohit Raina | Shahid Kapoor | Anang Desai | Jimmy Sheirgill | Tabu | Harsh Chhaya | Gaurav Gera | Saurabh Shukla | Deepak Dobriyal | Seema Pahwa | Annup Sonii | Sayantani Ghosh | Annu Kapoor | Ajay Devgn | Vishal Malhotra | Rahul Khanna | Ashutosh Rana | Jaaved Jaaferi | Ashwath Bhatt | Varun Badola | Renuka Shahane | Taapsee Pannu | Manoj Bajpayee | Milind Soman | Rajkummar Rao | Akhilendra Mishra | Rohit Roy | Suchitra Pillai | Gulshan Grover | Abhay Deol | Ashwini Kalsekar | Adil Hussain | Shweta Tiwari | Purab Kohli | Mita Vasisht | Vipin Sharma | Divya Dutta | Jaideep Ahlawat | Archana Puran Singh | Daya Shankar Pandey | Hina Khan | Rajesh Tailang | Urvashi Dholakia | Manish Chaudhari | Sheeba Chadha | Karanvir Bohra | Bhairavi Raichura | Pratik Gandhi | Konkona Sen Sharma 

4. If given a chance to go back to your role, what would you like to change or do better?

When I see any of my work even after three months, I feel I could’ve done better. As you get mature, you learn more about the craft. So what I did then was good for that time.

5. One film or role that inspired you to become an actor?

I grew up watching Akshay Kumar and Shah Rukh Khan. When Hrithik Roshan’s Kaho Na Pyaar Hai came in 2000, I had given my class 10th board exams. Everything about Hrithik was inspiring.