It was when he had put on 27 kgs in a matter of two years that actor Atul Verma realised that he needed to get back into shape. Atul, who will be seen in Balveer Returns, left his desk job at the time and devoted himself to working out and shedding kilos. It was after that, that he decided to join the acting field. “Like every ordinary middle, class guy, after graduation, I also thought of getting a good job. I started working as an engineer and when I joined my company, I was 63 to 64 kg. But sitting on the same chair and doing the same work for almost like eight to nine hours, from Monday to Friday and sometimes Monday to Saturday as well, I gradually started putting on weight. So, from 63kgs I reached 90kgs in two years. When I turned 90 kg, it was a shock for me. In fact, my family was like, ‘What has happened to you? This is not something which is you.’ I was always into fitness during my college days. I used to be part of bodybuilding championships and always won gold medals for that. I don't know how I became like that when I was working there, I guess I was more into my work, rather than into my fitness. One day my dad said, 'Maza nahi aa raha yaar,  ye kya kar raha hai?'. Then I decided that I'll quit this job and reduce my weight,” he says.

However, it was not a cakewalk to shed all that weight. “I started working on it. I cut down my carbs and I started my high-intensity cardio workout. I would do it in the mornings as well as the evenings. It took me almost four months to come to 67 kgs from 90kgs. I am a very dedicated person when it comes to achieving my goals. I was like I am going to do this now and there was no turning back. And after coming back to 67, I was like let me shape up now. So, I got my abs and everything in shape and then I was like, ‘Atul is back again!” says the actor, who has been seen in shows such as Bhagyalaxmi and Yeh Un Dino Ki Baat Hai.

It was then that he got into showbiz. “After that, I thought of what to do, because I didn’t want to do my old job. I thought about business, I thought about other jobs, but later on, I somehow came to Mumbai and started working in the acting field. Somewhere I'll say I was sort of trained because I studied in Punjab from where I did my  B-tech, so I learned Punjabi from there. Then I went to Allahabad where I worked as an engineer for two years, I learned Bhojpuri from there. I am a Haryanvi so I know Haryanvi language too. All this helps in acting,” he says.