Gaurav Khanna Was ‘Hesitant’ About Anuj Kapadia’s Role in Anupamaa, Says ‘I Gained 4-5 kgs…’

Gaurav Khanna is best known for playing the role of Anuj Kapadia in the popular show Anupamaa. He was not a part of Rajan Shahi’s show from the beginning. Rather he was joined much later by two other heroes – Rupali Ganguly and Sudhanshu Pandey. In an exclusive interview with News18 Showsha, Gaurav talks about the same and reveals how Anupama joined a show for the first time.

“I was wondering if I would be able to do justice to Anuj Kapadia”

Gaurav Khanna revealed that he was skeptical about casting Anuj Kapadia for the role. “It wasn’t hesitation but I was like, ‘Will I be able to do this?’ Anuj Kapadia is older than Gaurav Khanna. I was wondering if I would be able to do justice to a character who is of a certain age or at a certain stage in life. In real life, I do not have children while Anuj’s girlfriend has children of about 20-22 years. But Rajan (Shahi; producer) sir said, ‘Don’t worry, come for the test. We will see what will happen’. Then I was overjoyed when they told me that I had been selected,” Gaurav told us.

“Anuj Kapadia put on 4-5 kgs for the role”

Revealing how he worked on himself after Anuj Kapadia was selected for the role, the 41-year-old actor said, “I figured out a few things that I should do to prepare myself. I stopped working because I used to work too hard. I was in much better shape than I am now. Since I had to play a character above 40 years of age, I put on at least 4-5 kilos. Very few people do this on television. Then I started wearing glasses. It was something my mom told me to do. When I was coming for the look test, I told him about it and he asked me to wear these glasses. He told me that it would bring maturity to my face.”

“Anupama is like a steroid injection for my career”

Ever since Gaurav Khanna joined Anupama as Anuj Kapadia, he has become everyone’s favourite. The actor is often referred to as the king of romance on television. However, did you know that before Anupamaa, Gaurav had worked in at least 18 other shows? Talking about how Rajan Shahi’s show changed his career graph, Khanna joked that it was like a ‘steroid injection’. He also mentioned that even though fans call him an ‘amazing actor’ today, he believes he has always acted equally and worked equally hard.

“I feel it is like a steroid injection. Till now people were liking my characters but then a show like Anupama comes, a character like Anuj Kapadia and suddenly you are there (pointing at the sky). -Sometimes I feel very humbled when people come up to me and say, ‘You are a wonderful actor, you are such a natural actor’. When I talk to my friends or my parents, I always say I believe that one does not get anything by luck and before time. Maybe it is my time now. People are liking the show and the character. Earlier also I was the same actor, used to work the same way but now it feels good when people They say ‘you are a very good actor’. I thank them but I have always been like this,” said Gaurav.

“Anupama changed the perception of the industry towards me”

Khanna also agreed that Anupama has also changed the industry’s perception of him as an actor. Explaining the same, the actor shared, “I think the perception of the industry definitely changes. I was often told that only a certain type of actor works on television. But one of my characters was always very different from the one I played last time. Even before Anupama, I was doing a show called ‘Chandrakanta’. You will not recognize me in that show. It was a fictional character with long hair, armour, barbarian warrior. After that show suddenly I got a role like Anuj Kapadia who is soft, calm, gentle, businessman and well educated. I like this.”

“TV has a very limited frame for male actors. There’s a limit to what you can do. In all my shows, I tried to transform myself physically. Sometimes I build my physique, sometimes I gain or lose weight, and sometimes I change my appearance. I like do. No one tells me to do this. But I am lucky that my creatives and producers have helped me do what I want to do. I am very happy that people are liking it,” concluded Gaurav.

read all latest movie news Here