Vatsal Sheth is happy that at last he has been able to taste success with his latest release Heroes. “I am quite excited with the kind of feed back that I have been receiving for my performance in Heroes. For me it is a big film and a step up after films like Tarzan The Wonder Car and Nanhe Jaisalmer in which I had played a cameo role at the end of the film”, says Vatsal Sheth as he plonks in the chair opposite to me in the Caffe Café Day and orders two hot cappuccinos for us.
Vatsal confesses that he is glad that he had decided to accept the small cameo role in Nanhe Jaisalmer though the entire world had asked him at that point of time not to do what they said was a suicidal; move since Sameer Karnik had launched Heroes with the title Mera Bharat Mahaan after having made his debut with a flop film called Kyon Ho Gaya Na.
How did he bag Heroes? I ask Vatsal point blank. “Sameer told me that he liked the honesty which came across my character in Nanha Jaisalmer that when the casting for the film Mera Bharat Mahaan, as Heroes was tentatively titled at that time, started, he decided to take me as the first person on board. Sameer told me that since it was a character oriented film, he was keen on casting actors apne hisaab se in the film.”
Vatsal confesses that it was quite difficult to concentrate on the looks to suit his role as Sohail’s friend in the film since he had to work on the body language. “Sameer was particular that he did not want me to pump in and have looks like a city boy. People who watched the film complimented me and said that they loved the chemistry between the character of Nawabsaab that I had played and the character of Saand that Sohail played in the film.”
Vatsal admits that though he is an introvert and shy actor, he had the confidence that he could stand in front of Salman Khan , who he confesses is an all time favorite actor of his.”Salman gave me tips in body building and even offered the use of his gym anytime that I wanted, while once Sunny Sir who was ready with his make up on location, when I was just having my breakfast, did not at all throw any fuss and offered to wait till I was ready.”
Vatsal concedes that he has grown as an actor over the years ever since he had made his debut with the TV serial Just Mohabbat ten years ago. “Acting is all about growth. It is also all about patience. You can never be a complete actor. You always learn from your day to day experience and grow from film to film, as an actor.”
Vatsal admits that TV is a rush job and he did not get breathing space as an actor. “Though TV is really good for new comers who want a break, it stifles the actor in you. I was in college when I did Just Mohabbat. At that time, there were only three satellite channels-Zee, Star and Sony. Though was flooded with offers to act in TV serials, I decided to complete my education instead of opting for a career as an actor on television”
Vatsal confesses that he was disappointed a lot when Tarzan The wonder Car with which he had made his debut opposite Ayesha Takia flopped because rains, examinations of kids and also lack of publicity affected it a lot. One single meeting with Abbas and Mustan and he was cast in Tarzan. Vatsal was the only guy who had gone to meet Abbas and Mustan clad in just an ordinary shirt and Abbas and Mustan told him that he fitted the character because he had confidence in his acting and not just his body.
However Vatsal hastens to admit that he is quite optimistic about his career and has absolutely no regrets that Tarzan The Wonder Car had flopped, though he had to wait for over two years to get the kind of scripts that he wanted till Nanhe Jaisalmer landed on his lap.
Among the films of Vatsal which are on the floors are Paritosh Painter’s Paying Guest with Riya Sen, Celina Jaitley, Javed Jaffrey, Ashish Chowdhary, Shreyas Talpade, Sayali Bhagat and Neha Dhupia), Kedar Shinde’s To Baat Pakki, with Sharman Joshi, Tabu and Yuvika , Vikram Chopra’s Season’s Greetings with Sohail Khan, Tabu, Shilpa Shukla, Amrita Arora and Nandana Sen and Shivam Nair’s Exchange Offer with Rahul Bose and Esha Deol.
In Paying Guest, Vatsal plays the role of Jayesh, who is Riya’s boy friend. To Baat Pakki is a romantic comedy in which he plays the role of an engineer. Exchange Offer is a triangle between Rahul, Esha and Vatsal while Season’s Greetings is basically a comedy drama about relationships and consists of three to four short stories which are linked at the end.
