I'd rather be acting than playing myself on TV: Kalki Koechlin

Actress Kalki Koechlin, who will be making her TV debut with the "Kalki's Great Escape" show, says she is very selective when it comes to working on the small screen, as she would prefer "acting in films or doing theatre" over playing herself on TV.

The actress also said she made an exception for the FOX Life show as it allowed her to spend some time with her father Joel, and as the show resonated with her personality.

"I don't do many TV shows because I'd rather be doing films or theatre. I am an actor... I would rather be acting than playing myself on TV. So I don't do TV shows... so this was the time I did since we (she and her father) did this again after many years," Kalki told IANS.

In the show, Kalki goes on a motorbike adventure to the north east with Joel, a biker and photographer. They are seen sharing many experiences during the ride through unexplored terrains of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya. The show will go on air on FOX Life from Saturday.

The "Waiting" actress added that her career in the industry has kept her busy, and hence she took the opportunity of being with her father through this show.

She said: "We have not done many trips that we used to do earlier so that was definitely one of the reasons."

Why the Northeast? "We wanted to go to the Northeast because we have travelled a lot in India but didn't go to Northeast at all. Initially, my dad wanted me to cover (all) the seven sisters but then time constraint was there.

"We felt the need to find someone who knew the kind of theme which is not a regular TV show, and is kind of travelling to entertain people, but kind of more spontaneous and raw and kind of discovering things as we go along."

She said that the channel "understood that".

Kalki said the show is about learning from people, interacting with the locals and discovering the place.

Joel also had fun being a part of the show. He said: "It is a first for me and I think from the extracts that I have seen it is coming better than I thought."

--IANS

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