Rock star to villager, Purab Kohli explores diverse roles

New Delhi, Jan 15 (IANS) Purab Kohli, who was applauded for his longhaired-goatied rock star look in the hit film 'Rock On!', will now be seen as a villager in his forthcoming film '42 Kms', about marathon running.

'I'm playing the son of a farmer in '42 Kms'. He is a person who is considered to be good for nothing. A brat, at one point in his life he realises that nobody respects him. That's when his journey towards running the marathon starts, so that he can prove himself,' Purab told IANS on phone from Mumbai.

Purab, a video jockey-turned-actor, had started working on this film prior to 'Rock On!', but it was delayed.

The film revolves around five people from diverse backgrounds, leading a happy life until their world collapses in front of their eyes and they all get different reasons to compete in a 42-km marathon. It also stars Mandira Bedi, Bikram Saluja, Nausheen Ali Sardar and Samir Dattani. It is slated for a Jan 23 release.

Purab, who had successful stints as a VJ and TV actor, plunged into Bollywood with 'Bas Yun Hi' opposite Nandita Das. Besides this film, he acted in 'Supari', 'Vastu Shastra', 'My Brother Nikhil', 'Woh Lamhe' and 'Awarapan'.

The actor claims that his movie career was not planned.

'I didn't know that I finally would like to make a career in Bollywood, at least till the last three-four years. But after 'My Brother Nikhil', I decided that this is the place I want to be in,' said Purab.

'It's not that I will only concentrate on acting, it can be anything else, but this industry interests me, so whatever I do, it will be around Bollywood,' he added.

Purab says that he left TV because he felt he was stagnating there.

'I had a great time when I was a VJ. But then when you are attached with a channel for eight years, you want to move on after a point of time. I was getting stagnated there. So I decided to get into Bollywood, since acting gives you the opportunity to explore different aspects. It is not monotonous, you are a new person everyday and that's what interests me,' said Purab.

The young actor, who has done television series including the hit teenage show 'Hip Hip Hurray', has no qualms about getting back to the small screen.

'I would love to come back to TV; after all TV is a large medium and provides exposure. But once you start doing films you obviously want something that is interesting and big enough for you to do on the small screen. So only if I get a real good offer, I'll come back to TV,' he said.

The young actor who is riding high on his newfound success has a bouquet of films in his kitty including 'Shaadi Of The Dead', 'Rectangular Love Story' and 'Mocktale'.