'I am no where right now'

He stole our hearts with his character Ishaan Awasthi many years ago. Darsheel Safary, who made his acting debut in ‘Taare Zameen Par’, has made a name for himself as a child actor.

Since then, he has done movies like ‘Bumm Bumm Bole’, ‘Zokkomon’, and ‘Midnight’s Children’.  He will soon be seen acting opposite Palak Tiwari in the teen comedy ‘Quickie’, directed by Pradip Atluri. In a chat with Surupasree Sarmmah, Darsheel talks about his journey in the industry and more.


Do you feel lucky to have started your career with Aamir Khan in ‘Taare...’?
Of course, who wouldn’t feel lucky to start their career with an actor like him! The best part is that I didn’t expect us to stay in touch after the movie. Even today, I take a lot of guidance from him.

What was it like going to school after becoming an actor?
(Laughs) Let’s just say that there were a lot of autographs. I couldn’t get out of my class during breaks because students would not let me come back to class. ‘Taare Zameen Par’ was a movie that every kid loved and I could see that in them. I am very grateful of that.

You will be working on ‘Quickie’ now, tell us about your role in the film...
I am playing the role of a 19-year-old boy who has a great group of friends. The story revolves around them. Director Pradip Atluri has depicted the life of a teenager in the most apt way.

What is the most challenging part of being a child actor?
It is to handle everything, be it your friends, studies or work commitments and all these put together. One of the most important things is to be in touch with yourself or you will lose track.

You have also directed a short film in college...
It was in 2013, I wrote and directed it. It was a learning experience. To be honest, it was a very bad film.

However, over the years, I haven’t stopped writing. I have written a couple scripts and hopefully one day the world will see them.

What do you do when you are not working?
Believe it or not, I attend lectures. I do theatres or I write.

A recent movie you enjoyed watching...
I watched ‘Mubarakan’ and I loved it. I had the laugh of my life. Anil Kapoor is brilliant.

An actor you would like to work with someday...
I have learned so much from all the actors I have worked with so far. It was a different experience each time. I have not reached that stage where I have done 40 films and can choose who I want to work with. It is all a learning experience for me, I am nowhere right now.