Hrithik sets hearts aflutter

The bitter aftertaste left in the wake of Salman Khan's to the city was just about resurfacing when Hrithik Roshan failed to arrive in time for his date with the press. And with the elaborate security measures and the separate authorisation letters issued to each media person, there was apprehension in the air. But as soon as the latest Bollywood heart throb made his appearance, accompanied by his father Rakesh Roshan, one realised there couldn’t have been a more striking contradiction to the earlier episode.

As a thousand flashbulbs exploded, Hrithik posed with his father’s arm around his shoulder, smiling all the while and ensuring that the blue-eyed boy would be the media’s favourite for a long time to come.

On the very first question about how he was taking his success and his celebrity status, Hrithik stated with an absolutely disarming smile, "I am trying to enjoy my success" and added by way of explanation, "I get very little time for myself to actually enjoy my success - perhaps five or six seconds between shoots!"

Of the four films in the offing which include ‘Mission Kashmir’, ‘Fiza’ and ‘Yaadein’, ‘Fiza’ should be ready to hit the box-office in September. But Roshan senior says he would like to have his son star in another of his films "If he hits the dates and likes the story."

Hrithik denied being apprehensive either of other newcomers, especially Abhishek Bachhan, who is to make his debut soon, or of not being able to live upto the expectations of people, now that his first film has been such a major hit. "The secret of ‘Kaho Na Pyaar Hai’s’ success was an honest effort by everyone concerned. Frankly, I was not expecting anything out of it. So I’m not worried how my next film will do. I take life a shot at a time and try to give my best to each shot," he says matter of factly.

He added that the reason he made his debut relatively late was, "I did not want to think back and feel I could have done better if I had, done this or that. I wanted everything to be perfect; I took singing classes and dancing classes and every other imaginable thing"

Surprising everyone by stating that neither 'KNPH' nor even ‘Bhagwan Dada’ were his first films, he revealed that his first-ever screen appearance was "A small shot in a song in Aap ke Diwane."

Just before he left, the budding actor had a few words of wisdom. "I think sometimes actors get confused between the persona and the personality. They shouldn’t make their on-screen persona their personality," he said. And then he was gone in a whirlwind of smiles and security.

Compiled from local news media