When Sunil Grover takes on a new project, he totally dives into the character. It becomes really difficult to get across to him at that point, but when you mention it to him, he says that he likes to talk when the time is right. We are sitting in his makeup room, where he is freshening up after shooting for a hilarious scene. Dressed casually in a white vest and pyjamas, he looks relaxed but his mind is at work. Sunil’s passion for his craft is evident with the success of his characters whether it is Dr Mashoor Gulati or Rinku Bhabhi. He had been travelling all over the world for live shows for the greater part of 2017 and calls it a rewarding experience. There is a lot of excitement about his upcoming show, Dhan Dana Dan where he is paired with Shilpa Shinde. Excerpts from an interview…

Your characters Dr Mashoor Gulati and Rinku Bhabhi have set a benchmark. Now, you are coming as professor LBW. Are you feeling the pressure of having to match them?
Every character has its own beginning, middle and end. They have their own journey. I never know what is the destiny of my characters. However, the question is a valid one. I don’t feel any pressure as I have some amount of experience behind me. What that has taught me is that the only thing you can do is work hard. I am approaching this show with fresh thoughts and renewed energy. I am trying to understand the mechanism of combining cricket and humour and give it my best. My endeavour is to bring smiles on people’s faces. (Also Read: Shilpa Shinde just doubled our excitement by posting this picture with Sunil Grover from their new show)

Are you a huge cricket fan in real life? Who are your favourites?
I don’t have a crush of any cricketer for gender reasons (laughs out loud). I have been a fan of some of India’s great players and foreign ones too. I feel Bollywood and cricket run in India’s veins. In our country, everybody is into cricket. It binds people in a huge way. The cricket frenzy is doubled during the Indian Premier League with fans supporting their own teams. There is a beautiful atmosphere around with cricket mania in the air. I’m glad to be a part of the madness and enjoying it.

Shilpa Shinde has confessed that she is a huge fan of your work and considers it an honour to work with you. Comment…
That is very sweet of her. She is very talented and it’s a pleasure to work with her. She is dedicated, hard-working and I’m enjoying working with her. I hope our jodi can bring some more smiles on the faces of the audiences.

You travelled a great deal for live performances in the past one year. How has that helped you as an artiste?
Performing live has been a great experience for me. I understand the immense reach of TV, films and now the internet, but acting in front of a live audience has its own charm. I met many kind of audiences across the world and got a great amount of love. As you travel, you create jokes based on the place, the people and situations there. So, you cater to different mindsets. Within India and the Southeast Asian communities, there is so much diversity in mindsets. So, you perform in different set ups before people with varied thoughts. There is a great amount of learning in it for an artiste.

The internet is opening up new avenues for comedians. What is your take on the comedy scene in the country?
I feel it is great change that will bring a lot of freshness. Fans can watch Dhan Dana Dan on the internet and on their phones with Jio application. With this show, I am stepping into the digital world, which is growing beautifully. Over the years, mediums have changed from radio to TV and films. The internet is a new medium and its beauty is it can be accessed from anywhere in the world.

Now, this is an inevitable question. Many fans are hoping for an iconic reunion between Kapil Sharma and you…
I wish Kapil Sharma great health. I hope he concentrates and devotes time to his health. If God wants us to reunite, then why not? Right now I am busy devoting my entire energies towards this new show.

Have you seen any episode of Family Time with Kapil Sharma?
No, I haven’t been able to watch the show as I was busy with my shoot for this one.

A lot of reports are doing the rounds that you refused to be a part of Family Time with Kapil Sharma as he did not agree on putting your name in the show’s title. Would you like to clarify it?
Let bygones be bygones. I hope to work ahead for a better future. We shared a great association and I have immense amount of gratitude towards the platform. It is irrelevant right now. I don’t wish to comment on this. If I am forced or compelled to talk about it, in the future, I may do it but definitely not now.

In the field of comedy, who are the artistes you admire?
There is this great comedian, Sunil Grover (laughs out loud). No, I’m kidding. I love Peter Sellers, Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy and even Tom Hanks for their comic flair. All these actors have a timeless quality about them. I adore Charlie Chaplin and different genres of comedy. Internationally, there is so much talent to enjoy.

Actors who play comic characters get stereotyped in certain roles or genres of comedy. Does that disappoint you?
That’s what attracted me to this show. It has a certain amount of freshness. I feel there is a bit of typecasting of comic actors, which is a let-down. I feel we should experiment more with our comic genres and try to do something fresh. The approach needs to be changed. It is upto the audience to reject or accept it but as makers, we must try and do something new every time. In this show, we have done few new things and I hope to experiment more in the future. My aim is to take on projects that approach comedy in a different manner.

Do we ever see you writing a comedy show?
These shows are like my tuition classes. I will hopefully improve in all facets.