I don’t want to date a girl from B’wd again: Ruslaan Mumtaz

Shruti Jambhekar, TNN | Sep 25, 2013, 12.00 AM IST

Ruslaan Mumtaz on his journey from silver screen to TV, his date dilemma and more in a chat.

So how has the shift from films to television been like? You had made your Bollywood debut with Mera Pehla Pehla Pyar in 2007. What made you wait this long to get on to television? I am an actor, and as long as I am getting to act, the medium doesn't matter. I was offered TV shows earlier as well, but I was not sure about doing a television show at that time. But the script of Jee Le Zaracleared my doubts. And now I'm enjoying working on small screen as the feedback is instant and so far has been positive. You come to know almost immediately whether your show is working or not. 

Acting has been in your genes (your mother is yesteryear character actor Anjana Mumtaz). So was it any easier to make a debut in films? Not at all. Infact, my mother was against the idea of me becoming an actor. When I started doing theatre, I asked mom to come and watch my play — and she later asked me not to act. But I went ahead with my decision of being an actor and prove it to her that I could act. I never used any of her sources for getting work. And I don't even know if I had taken her help it would have helped me getting better roles, but I never wanted to depend on anyone for my career. So I have had my own share of struggles and I am glad that whatever I have achieved today has been on my own merit. I am a self-made man. 

You were the first choice to essay Jamal Mallik's character in Slumdog Millionairewhich Dev Patel eventually did. Do you feel sad that things did not work out and regret that your career would have headed in a different direction altogether if that film had happened? Of course, it feels bad. I auditioned at least four times for the same role. It would be difficult to say how it would have affected my career, but it's better to move on in few cases, rather than feeling sad or sorry about it. That film was not in my destiny. 

Tell us about your bond with your mom. I'm a total mom's boy. It was she who inspired me to become an actor. As a teenager, I was full of myself and never listened to her. But now, we are more like friends and I can share everything with her. 

What do you prefer doing when not working? I am a fitness freak — so when I am not shooting, I go to the gym. I also watch a lot of movies and catch up with my friends who are doing theatre and see them perform. Also, I like travelling a lot — usually I make a couple of trips every year, but I don't think that can happen now since I am busy with television. 

There were reports about you dating Sasha Agha. I was too young and have had too many girlfriends. I realized that girls from within the industry are very dramatic, even off the camera. Many a times their reactions would startle me. It was too much to take. I don't want to date anyone from B'wd again. 

Are you dating anyone currently? No. I'm single right now. And if I do get into a relationship it will be marriage. I won't ask a girl out, instead I will ask her 'Will you marry me?' Iguess I have become matured now and look forward to settling down in life.

LINK:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/news-interviews/I-dont-want-to-date-a-girl-from-Bwd-again-Ruslaan-Mumtaz/articleshow/22998067.cms

"I felt like Emraan Hashmi" - Ruslaan Mumtaz

Chocolate boy Ruslaan Mumtaz clears the air about his past and talks about being noticed. Filmfare is all ears

More on: Filmfare, Ruslaan Mumtaz 

Written By Kajol Dave

Posted Tue, Sep 17, 2013

You’d never figure the pent up  angst brewing behind that innocent face. His demeanour, his puppy eyes and his fair cheeks remind you of a young Aamir Khan. But let that not mislead you. Ruslaan Mumtaz is a firebrand waiting to happen. By his own admittance, he’s destiny’s ‘least favourite child’. He made a modest debut with Mera Pehla Pehla Pyaar (MP3) in 2007. Six years later, all he’s managed to cull out from a rather unforgiving industry is supporting roles in movies like Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai, Dangerous Ishq and the lead in I Don’t Luv U (IDLU). He’s learnt to take controversies and allegations in his stride. He has A-list ambitions. But he feels the Gods are playing unfair. Not one to take it lying down, Ruslaan is trying his hand at off-kilter cinema. Carving a niche for himself, learning from his contemporaries and preparing for that one big shot at the moon. 

Life’s like that

Though I Don’t Luv U did not fare well at the box-office, Ruslaan is still confident about his future projects. With great excitement he says, “I haven’t got a bad review yet, so I am hoping to continue in my efforts.” The energy doesn’t dwindle as he continues to talk about his lovely co-star Chetna Pande. The chivalrous Ruslaan even helped out his newcomer lady with ‘those intimate scenes’ in IDLU. He adds, “Chetna was nervous about the intimate scene. It wasn’t weird for me because I have done them before. I spent two hours convincing her on how important the scene was and that we had to do it. It was around 4 am when we finally did the scene.Luckily, we did it in one take. But I was irritated. It made me feel like I was Emraan Hashmi.”

Blast from the past

Life’s come full circle for Ruslaan. Until recently his biggest claim to infamy was an MMS scandal with Sasheh Agha (previously known as Zarah Khan). Ruslaan insists it was not him but someone else in the clip. Instead, Sasheh and her mother Salma Agha, yesteryear actor and singer, accused Ruslaan of circulating the clip for ulterior motives. IDLU was based on an MMS scandal. A wounded Ruslaan defends himself, “I didn’t want to stand there and make it a boxing match between Sasheh and me. I never fight in close circles or in the public. I can never disrespect a woman even if she has the worst things to say about me. I stay mum because that’s the way I’ve been brought up. My mother advised me to let it go. I wasn’t even involved with the clip. I felt bad for Sasheh and I’ve always sympathised with her. I didn’t want to add fuel to the fire.” He assures everything is fine between the two today. But then again Sasha’s Aurangzeb released on the same day as Ruslaan’s IDLU. Talk about another twist in the tale.

TV’s my saviour

Generally, Actors do not like to move from big screen movies to TV soap operas. But Ruslaan thinks differently. He says, “The audience loves me. But the films I am doing are small. I am not able to reach out to a wider audience because big producers like Yash Raj and Dharma aren’t backing me. Even if the audience likes me, they have little chance of seeing me. I want to reach out to them. I want to be noticed.” Ruslaan feels that the only way to exhibit his passion for acting on a large scale is by doing television serials.

Spilling the beans

Ruslaan goes onto share some deep dark secrets. He portions out his casting couch experience. “Once at an auditioning studio, I was asked by a coordinator to get inside the back room and give him my best. He promised to make me a star.” But Ruslaan was smart enough to avoid the proverbial trap. The actor has had to deal with allegations of being gay in the past. He maintains a candid stance, “Being gay doesn’t matter. Being a good actor does. Everything else is secondary.”

Where’s the competition?

Ruslaan believes he’s been denied a place in Hindi cinema’s new young club. He blames it on luck. “My colleagues are doing better films than me. If I were getting the same films  then I’d be competition. They are bigger than me. So, I don’t think anyone is competition for me.” He was born in the same year as Ranbir Kapoor and he feels greatly about B-town’s favourite young actor. “Ranbir is competition for Shah Rukh Khan. He’s very talented.” Ruslaan’s identified what could be competition for him. He reveals, “Someone like Varun Dhawan is competition but then again he is David Dhawan’s son.” Not just his competitors he’s got a keen eye on the directors he wants to work with too. “I love Farhan Akhtar. Dil Chahata Hai is one of my favourite films. He is number one on my list. Also, I want to work with Karan Johar because whatever he touches turns to gold. I would like to work with Anurag Kashyap because his cinema is so diverse.” With his wish list tucked firmly in mind, Ruslaan turns to the papers. Looking for his name. Hoping to catch a whiff of the limelight.

LINK:http://www.filmfare.com/interviews/i-felt-like-emraan-hashmi-ruslaan-mumtaz-4177.html

Chocolate boy Ruslaan Mumtaz mobbed in Ahmedabad 16 Sep 2013 06:11 PM | TellychakkarTeam

Our TV actors are no less popular than their counterparts on the big screen. After Anuj Sachdeva (we wrote an article earlier), the new kid on the block- the very hot and good looking actor Ruslaan Mumtaz was mobbed by girls recently.

The actor who entered the small screen space with the popular show on Sony TV, Kehta Hai Dil Jee Le Zara (Rose Audio Visuals Pvt Ltd) recently visited the city of Gujratis, Ahmedabad as part of a promotional bid for his show.

The serial which started just a month back has managed to win the hearts of millions via its simple storyline and amazing star cast. An onlooker informed us, “As soon as Ruslaan entered the mall where the promotional event was organised, he was badly mobbed by the teenage crowd present there.”

Ruslaan along with his gorgeous co-star Sangeeta Ghosh were in Ahmedabad to meet their fans and create a buzz about their new show. The response from the younger generation for Ruslan has been tremendous, especially since most of the girls recognize him from his first movie MP3 (Mera Pehla Pehla Pyaar), where he played the adorable teenage lover.

When we buzzed Ruslaan on the incident, he smiled, “I was stunned by the response. Most of the girls were calling me Dhruv due to the onscreen characters they have seen me play. It was really touching to see the overwhelming response.”

Guess this new hunk on TV has finally managed to get his share of loyal ‘fan’ship.

LINK:http://www.tellychakkar.com/tv/tv-news/chocolate-boy-ruslaan-mumtaz-mobbed-ahmedabad

|| SaRuv Jee le Zara - Subanallah ||