Don't have anymore 'chocolate boy' left in me: R. Madhavan

Be it "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein", "Tanu Weds Manu" or his TV show "Sea Hawks", actor R. Madhavan, fondly remembered for essaying the role of a lover boy on screen, says he would now do age appropriate romance as he does not have a "chocolate boy" left in him anymore.

Asked if he feels romance comes easily to him, Mumbai-based Madhavan told IANS over phone: "Well, 'Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein' and 'Tanu Weds Manu' had great directors also... romance is something I enjoy doing, but I have to do age appropriate romance right now. I am no more the 'chocolate boy' still, romance is always going to be a part of my life."

The actor, 47, says he has to change the way he romances.

But does he still wish to play a chocolate boy on screen?

"No, there is no more chance of me being a chocolate boy," pat came the reply from the actor, who added: "I don't feel it at all as much as people urging and egging me to do. I don't want to make a fool of myself."

The "Anbe Sivam" star says there is no more a "chocolate boy" left in him.

"I don't think there's anymore chocolate boy left in me... Like if I do the roles on the screen that border on romance it will be age appropriate," Madhavan said.

Ever since the actor made his Bollywood debut in 2001 with "Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein", he has been seen in Hindi blockbusters like "Rang De Basanti", "Guru", "3 Idiots", "Tanu Weds Manu Returns" and "Saala Khadoos".

With such a filmography, does he feel he has achieved it all as an actor?

"No, I have not achieved it all by any standards. I have a long way to go. But yeah, it feels good to have a strong foothold in Hindi as well as the south market because it gives me a choice of doing more subjects and being a part of bigger films or subjects that I feel completely in sync with as opposed to doing a film just because I need to be working," he said.

The actor says because of multiple industries, he gets multiple choices.

"So, I am very grateful for this situation," he added.

Madhavan says he will always be a struggling actor.

"I struggle on many fronts on having to move to a different level, having to cater to constantly evolving audiences... So that struggle is there and I hope it is always a part of my life because that keeps me going," he said.

He is now gearing up for his next film -- "Chanda Mama Door Ke", a space adventure film also starring Sushant Singh Rajput and Nawazuddin Siddiqui.

"'Chanda Mama Door Ke' is my next project and I am looking forward to work with Sushant Singh Rajput and Nawazuddin Siddiqui. I have not worked with them before and I am also very excited to working with Sanjay Puran Singh (director). He is extremely talented and we get on like a house on fire," said the actor.

Madhavan hopes that "Chanda Mama Door Ke" also turns out to be a landmark film in his career.

"Because the story is right up there with all the other scripts I have done," he added.

(Durga Chakravarty can be contacted at durga.c@ians.in)

--IANS

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