We invited Hiten Tejwani, an actor, for an interview with Most Popular Stories. Hiten Tejwani is an Indian television actor known for his work as Anurag Basu in Kasautii Zindagi Ki, Niranjan Chaturvedi in Gangaa, Karan Virani in Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Manav Deshmukh in Pavitra Rishta. In 2017, he was a contestant on Bigg Boss 11. Let’s get to know more about his life experience.
- How did you get involved in Acting?
To cut the long story short, I started off quite early in college. Initially, I worked in short plays on stage. During college days itself, I started doing ad films and then did theatre for quite some time. Basically, I always wanted to be an actor and wanted to do movies. Afterwards, I also worked as an ad film director and used to guide the editor on how to edit shots. It was after this phase, that I planned to join TV. I used to watch some shows and felt that given a chance I would have also done a great job. That’s when I started giving auditions, I started off with Ghar ek Mandir, and then there was no looking back. I went on doing back-to-back TV soaps with Balaji, followed by web series, reality-TV shows and I am still working.
- Any life changing experience which you would like to share with your fans?
Well, I would say I always followed my dreams. Right from the beginning, I wanted to be in the showbiz, and made it happen. Yes, of course I wanted to do films, but as I said, I had to do everything on my own as I was an outsider and had no one in the industry. There was no one to straightaway launch me in a movie. So, I started doing TV where my only aim was to let my work speak for me. So, I worked hard with sincerity. Yes, I would say that when you dream of something, you have to work hard towards it and give it your 100%. Don’t rest till you achieve your dream and just keep on pursuing it.
- As we have read about you, you owned a restaurant. What made you to start something out of your league? And how was your experience?
Yes, I did have a restaurant and you can say it was kind of a backup plan. Our industry is not very secure, to be honest, and you require something to fall back upon. However, what I felt is it is only good for people who are already into it. You get to learn a lot of things, so it’s good for people who are already into the business. I learnt a lot from this new avenue of business and it was a lovely experience. I always dreamt of owning a restaurant and that dream got fulfilled.
- Apart from Gauri which is your favorite co-star you enjoyed working with?
See, I enjoy and love my work, so I enjoyed working with all my co-actors. It won’t be right to take any one person’s name, as all of them are equally invested in the project and are giving their 100%. I am blessed to have such lovely co-stars and god bless them all.
- Among the new generation which couple you feel have the same chemistry which we use to see between you and Gauri?
Actually, I haven’t been watching too much of TV of late. It would be really difficult to name any one couple sharing the same chemistry like us. I guess there are quite a few great couples and people love them for their chemistry. So….I mean it would be really difficult for me to single out any one couple.
- If you weren’t an actor, what would you have liked to be?
If I weren’t an actor, since I am a Sindhi, I would have definitely gone into some business. I don’t know which business or what type of business model, but yes, it would have been some business. I also tried chartered accountancy but left it midway in college.
- Is there a role you have not played but would like to someday?
It is difficult to single out anyone role, but what I would like to say is I want to play a role that would be remembered, respected, and above all set an example. I want to play a character in such a way that people would say other actors that you have to play the role, just the way Hiten did. There’s no role that an actor can’t do or shouldn’t do, so I would also like to challenge myself. So, that kind of impactful role and I am sure it’s on cards, I will surely do it someday.
- Which of your roles was the most challenging for you to capture?
Every role is challenging and it might not be similar to the character that you have played before. That way, every role that I have played has been challenging for me. However, I would like to mention about a web series, named ‘Investigation’, where I had to play the character of a cop which I never did before. Although he is a cop but after all he is a human being at the end of the day.
- In your opinion what are the keys to success?
I would definitely say hard work and patience. See, our industry works in such a way that there’s no guarantee that you will have work always. So, you should have the patience to sail through difficult times and understand the fact that when the right time comes, everything will fall into place. Another most important thing is god forbid if you have signed something and that didn’t happen, believe in the fact that something bigger is waiting for you to happen. Just don’t lose hope and work hard. Also, be very practical. Know and identify your weakness and strengths and work on the weak points. You never know, you might just need to polish it for your next project. So, always be practical and identify your weaknesses.
- What advice would you give to someone who is just starting with his/her journey?
Just don’t lose hope, do your best, give your 100%, and always remember that you are here for a purpose. Try to make friends, and even if you don’t make friends, make sure you are connected to your parents or someone with whom you can talk and share your thoughts. Life is precious and takes good care of yourself. This lockdown has taught us quite a few things. We might not get everything we are used to, but that’s okay. As long as the basic necessities are there, and we are happy, everything shall be alright. So, take care, work hard, and that’s it from my side.
Connect here,
https://www.instagram.com/hitentejwani
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