Gurmeet Choudhary in Punar Vivah — Zindagi Milegi Dobara
Tellytown actors are pulling out all stops to get into the skin of their screen characters. From gaining flab (and shedding it too), shaving off their mane to putting on the panstick for long hours to look 'real', perfecting their martial arts moves for a kick butt high voltage action sequences, our soapbox stars want to wow the audience with a vengeance.
Hair Apparent
Who: Kushal Tandon
Role Play: Viraat in Ek Hazaaron Mein Meri Behna Hain
Hair Rising: Virat adopts buzz cut to lend emotional support to sweetheart Maanvi in the show.
To support his love Maanvi who is undergoing Cancer treatment, Virat has shaved off his thick locks and is flaunting the buzz cut. Kushal says, "When my role demanded the look I was more than happy to do it. This will remain a memorable experience for me."
Who: Priya Wal
Role Play: Anvesha Banerjee Ray in Remix
Hair Story: Priya took a bold step and streaked her hair red and purple.
Her coloured streaks became a rage among youngsters. No one actually got to see any other television actress experimenting so much with their hair!
Who: Karan V Grover
Role Play: Karan Jagmohan Prasaad in Yahaaan Main Ghar Ghar Kheli
Buzz like that: Karan too went for a buzz cut to fit into the storyline.
"It was my idea to go for the cut. I thought the look would suit the character and viewers too would get to see something different. My mom was shocked when she saw me with that hairstyle," says Karan.
Who: Ronit Roy
Role Play: Rishabh Bajaj in Kasauti Zindagi Kay
B & W: Ronit sported salt and pepper hair for few years.
Ronit had salt and pepper hair for few years. "My salt and pepper hair were because of make-up, and because of that I had to colour my hair black for eight years," says Ronit.
Action reloaded
Who: Gurmeet Choudhary
Role Play: Yash Sindhia in Punar Vivah - Zindagi Milegi Dobara
Fab to fab abs: Well chiselled bod and perfect abs for stunts in shows.
With his six pack abs and several action scenes in few shows, Gurmeet knows his art well. "I prefer to do my own action scenes. When I was asked to do action scenes I refused to have a body double. When I was asked to climb a 40 feet high crane in the opening scene of the show, I did it on my own without harness. It was a risk, but the expressions were worth it. I believe that to get in the skin of character one has to experience it. In any case extra training is helpful," says Gurmeet.
Who: Karan Singh Grover
Role Play: Dr. Armaan Mallik in Dill Mill Gayye
Action packed: Tattoos apart, his power packed punches told the bodyline story of the actor on screen.
Tattoos and muscles typify KSG. He has always gained eyeballs with his these two assets. Karan has built his muscular body with strict training and hitting the gym regularly. He did a kickboxing scene that was an impressive adaptation of Robert Downey Jr's action sequence in Sherlock Holmes. Reportedly, Karan even hurt his back while filming this particular sequence in 2010.
Who: Barun Sobti
Role Play: Arnav Singh Raizada in Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon?
Tone it up: With a dash of muscular Touch the actor's efforts to turn more macho is earning him lot of fan following.
From a cameo in a youth show to being prime time telly's hottest star, Barun has come a long way. "I haven't really done anything to change my physique. I am genetically blessed — I don't hit the gym, but I Work Out to get muscles. It is okay for me if I workout even for three days in a month. The action director always guides me during the fight sequences and that makes it easier for me," says Barun.
In character
Who: Deven Bhojani
Role Play: Gopal Thakkar (Gattu) in Baa Bahoo Aur Baby
Age is just a number: As Gattu, who is autistic, the actor not only won the audiences' heart, but also set standards for others.
Most actors couldn't make out his real age when he played Gattu. Not just fame and popularity, Deven got loads of love when he did this show. To prepare for this cute character, Deven "observed autistic children. I did watch few Hollywood films, but it didn't help. I like to look different for different characters, but the whole thing shouldn't look forced. I used to take half an hour to get ready for the character. The 25 seconds silence before saying action helped me a lot. There were times when I would go on even after the director said cut."
Who: Disha Vakani
Role Play: Daya Jethalal Gada in Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah
Accent perfect: Disha Vakani made headlines with her dialogue delivered by sporting that trademark pout which still is a hit with the masses.
"Before doing this show, I was active in theatre and people knew that I used to do mimicry. While shooting, the show director asked me to come up with some weird voice patterns which helped me segregate Disha's character from other Gujarati characters on television. Initially, I used to practice this peculiar voice modulation for two hours. It was very difficult and I could not speak to people during the shoot because I was scared to get back into my normal voice mode. Creating this type of voice and then maintaining it isn't easy. The audience loves Daya's voice and I also enjoy enacting it," laughs Disha.
Who: Mona Singh
Role Play: Jassi in Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin
Brace it up: Braces, flicked hair, thick framed glasses and loose fitting salwar-kameez gave her a unique image to her onscreen character.
In loose fitted clothes, braces and flicked hair, the plain Jane bespectacled Jassi might have been a fashion disaster, but she became an icon of sorts. Mona made several appearances in various cities, but only in her character look. It took her several hours to slam the make up and her gums would bleed because of the braces, but the ugly duckling role gave Pune model Mona a cult status and kids love.
Who: Mohit Raina
Role Play: Mahadev in Devon Ke Dev Mahadev
Spice it up: Rudraksh, curly locked wigs, rubber snake wrapped around his neck and a dash of vibhuti — the character of Lord Shiva demanded Mohit work long hours in the make up room. Not to mention the Kathak tutorials to learn Shiv tandav.
Mohit gained lot of fame and popularity with his onscreen portrayal of Shiv in the show. Mohit says, "I had to work hard on my language as it required shudh Hindi. I take an hour to get ready with my outfit and make-up. Initially, it used to take more than an hour, but now I get ready faster. When I was offered the show, I was apprehensive that how I will fit into a mythological show, but now I'm happy and satisfied with the audiences' reaction."
Bodylicious
Who: Vivian D'sena
Role Play: Superstar RK (Rishab Kumar) in Madhubala - Ek Ishq Ek Junoon
Pound shedding: The actor lost 12 kilos to get into the skin of the character.
Having lost about 12-13 kilos, courtesy strict diet and gymming for two-three hours a day, for the role of RK, Vivian D'sena's entry in the show has been quite dhamakedar. "I had a goal and went about following it. So, besides my regular exercises regime, I had to consume lots of green tea. I used to take at least 12 cups of green tea every day. The antioxidants in the tea helped me lose weight fast," says Vivian.
Who: Smriti Irani
Role Play: Tulsi Virani in Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi
Style me different: She donned different garbs as her character grew thereby setting new benchmarks for the newcomers in the tellyland
With her different looks and style, she created a niche for herself in the industry. The entire history of television changed with her show and character. With her dedication and ability to play roles of different age group, Smriti was asked to put on weight and she did it with no qualms.
Who: Smriti Kalra
Role Play: Suvreen Gugal in Suvreen Guggal Topper of the year
Flab to fab: While she amassed few kilos for the show 12/24 Karol Bagh, she got back into shape for her role in her current show.
This plump looking girl made her presence felt in 12/24 Karol Bagh, but it is her current show that made several guys turn their heads. Smriti says that what people get to her see her now as Surveen is the real her. She had actually put on weight for her earlier show. This girl surely looks awesome and pretty in her 'new-old' avatar. Way to go girl!**
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