<p>A 1999 alumnus of St Joseph’s College of Commerce (Autonomous), Bengaluru boy Gautam Sharma has now made a name for himself in the Hindi television industry. Having played some popular characters like Dushyanta in ‘Shakuntala’, Arjuna in ‘Dwarkadheesh – Bhagwaan Shree Krishn’ and Bablu Patel in ‘Jamai Raja’, Gautam is slowly but surely carving a niche for himself. In an interview with<strong> Surupasree Sarmmah</strong>, he talks about his fond memories of Bengaluru, his favourite hangout places and more. </p>.<p><strong>Tell us about your connection with Bengaluru...</strong><br />Bengaluru is home to me. I was born and brought up in the city and completed my education there. My family still leaves there and I visit them often. <br /><br /><strong>What were some of your favourite hangout places?</strong><br />Back in the day, my friends and I hung out mostly in MG Road and Brigade Road. Our favourite place to head to was ‘Pecos’. As a family, our favourite restaurant was ‘Nagarjuna’, where we used to enjoy the Andhra meals, spicy chilli chicken and Andhra biryani. We used to visit Airlines Hotel on Lavelle Road too. </p>.<p><strong>When you come home now, what do you feel has changed in the city?</strong><br />Though the traffic and population has increased a lot, Bengaluru as a city is still very welcoming, which I don’t see in other cities like Delhi and Mumbai. The people here are quite polite and humble. </p>.<p><strong>How and when did you take to acting?</strong><br />It was a stroke of luck. While in college, I did a lot of fashion shows and plays. In one of those years, I was chosen to represent Bengaluru in ‘Grasim Mr India’ in Mumbai, for which I moved to the city.<br />Soon I started modelling and eventually started getting offers for advertisements. Later, the doors to the television industry opened for me. </p>.<p><strong>Do you have any Bollywood aspirations?</strong><br />Honestly, I don’t have any aspirations to work in Bollywood films; I would like to work in online portals like Netflix. For me, meaningful content is more important, it doesn’t matter which platform I am working on. </p>.<p><strong>Your interests other than acting?</strong><br />I love being fit, work out in any form interests me. Sports is another activity that keeps me engaged. I religiously follow my passion for riding. I love bikes and I am also part of a riding club in Mumbai. We usually head out for rides on weekends. </p>.<p><strong>If not an actor, what would you aspire to be?</strong><br />I would have been a pilot. I have always admired men in uniform. <br /><br /><strong>A few of his favourite things</strong></p>.<ul> <li>Bikes</li> <li>Imported bikes</li> <li>European trips</li> <li>Latest gadgets</li> <li>Scottish whiskeys</li></ul>
<p>A 1999 alumnus of St Joseph’s College of Commerce (Autonomous), Bengaluru boy Gautam Sharma has now made a name for himself in the Hindi television industry. Having played some popular characters like Dushyanta in ‘Shakuntala’, Arjuna in ‘Dwarkadheesh – Bhagwaan Shree Krishn’ and Bablu Patel in ‘Jamai Raja’, Gautam is slowly but surely carving a niche for himself. In an interview with<strong> Surupasree Sarmmah</strong>, he talks about his fond memories of Bengaluru, his favourite hangout places and more. </p>.<p><strong>Tell us about your connection with Bengaluru...</strong><br />Bengaluru is home to me. I was born and brought up in the city and completed my education there. My family still leaves there and I visit them often. <br /><br /><strong>What were some of your favourite hangout places?</strong><br />Back in the day, my friends and I hung out mostly in MG Road and Brigade Road. Our favourite place to head to was ‘Pecos’. As a family, our favourite restaurant was ‘Nagarjuna’, where we used to enjoy the Andhra meals, spicy chilli chicken and Andhra biryani. We used to visit Airlines Hotel on Lavelle Road too. </p>.<p><strong>When you come home now, what do you feel has changed in the city?</strong><br />Though the traffic and population has increased a lot, Bengaluru as a city is still very welcoming, which I don’t see in other cities like Delhi and Mumbai. The people here are quite polite and humble. </p>.<p><strong>How and when did you take to acting?</strong><br />It was a stroke of luck. While in college, I did a lot of fashion shows and plays. In one of those years, I was chosen to represent Bengaluru in ‘Grasim Mr India’ in Mumbai, for which I moved to the city.<br />Soon I started modelling and eventually started getting offers for advertisements. Later, the doors to the television industry opened for me. </p>.<p><strong>Do you have any Bollywood aspirations?</strong><br />Honestly, I don’t have any aspirations to work in Bollywood films; I would like to work in online portals like Netflix. For me, meaningful content is more important, it doesn’t matter which platform I am working on. </p>.<p><strong>Your interests other than acting?</strong><br />I love being fit, work out in any form interests me. Sports is another activity that keeps me engaged. I religiously follow my passion for riding. I love bikes and I am also part of a riding club in Mumbai. We usually head out for rides on weekends. </p>.<p><strong>If not an actor, what would you aspire to be?</strong><br />I would have been a pilot. I have always admired men in uniform. <br /><br /><strong>A few of his favourite things</strong></p>.<ul> <li>Bikes</li> <li>Imported bikes</li> <li>European trips</li> <li>Latest gadgets</li> <li>Scottish whiskeys</li></ul>
