I am open to all kind of roles in television, films and theatre: Sharad Malhotra

A page from the personal diary of Sharad Malhotra Hi there… This is your friend Sharad Malhotra. You must have seen me in my last show Banoo Main Teri Dulhann in which I played two characters Sagar and Amar. Now, a little bit about myself... Though a Punjabi munda, I was born and raised in Kolkata. I completed my graduation in B Com from St. Xaviers College, Kolkata and it’s been seven years now that I am staying here alone in Mumbai. On the professional side, let me share that I was chosen as the Face of the Year in Kolkata in 2003. I never wanted to get into acting and always loved playing cricket. So much so that I spent around twenty years of my life playing the game. But there was a time in my life when I wanted to do something different, something which I will enjoy doing. Later, I thought of getting into television although I had no influence and none from my family was into television. To give a start somewhere, I attended a couple of acting workshops at Kala Manthan Academy under Nishi Arora and Samrat Mukherjee and also at Kishore Namit Kapoor's Acting Academy. I also did advertisements for many big brands like Life Insurance Corporation, Peerless Insurance, Maruti, Standard Chartered, ICICI, Gold Reliance and many more. In 2004, I participated in the Zee Cine Star Ki Khoj and was honoured as a winner. That indeed was a life changing moment and start up to my career. I got an offer to play the lead role of mentally retarded man as Sagar in Zee TV’s Banoo Main Teri Dulhann. Later I also did a dance reality show Yeh Hai Jalwa. After the success of the show, I took a break and went to New York Film Academy (NYFA) to study further. For three years, I didn’t do anything although I was being offered many roles. But I wanted to do something out of the box. After a long wait, I made my Bollywood debut in Prateek Chakraborty’s From Sydney with Love. I was highly praised for my role in the film and got good reviews from all channels. My journey till date has been very great. It was not at all a cake walk for me. I did have to go through a lot of hard work to reach this position. Today when people ask me as to how I achieved so much, my reply to them is, “It’s just my hard work that has paid off.” Of course, there is also a luck factor that also matters a lot. In future, I am open to doing all kind of roles in television, films and theatre. Now a little on the personal front…. I am a boy next door. I love watching movies. Since I am a very impatient kind of a guy, I don’t like reading books. I also have liking for horse riding, swimming and kick-boxing. Being a Punjabi, I love to eat. I am very much single and am planning to settle down in a year’s time. Well, well, this was my journey in a nutshell. Hope you love me the same way as you have been doing over the years. I on my part promise to keep you entertained.