The very hot and dashing Karan Singh Grover is back on television after a long hiatus with 4 Lions Films’ Qubool Hai on Zee TV in which he will be seen as Asad Ahmed Khan, a serious man. With this show, he will be seen shifting from youth centric shows like Dill Mill Gayye and Dil Dosti Dance (D3) to a more mature-serious drama. When asked what prompted him to take up this show, he said, “Importantly… there were two factors. Firstly, it was important for me to break out of the image of the character I was doing earlier. I had to do something that was as powerful but different in every aspect. Furthermore, Since Asad has different layers; it will help me experiment with my acting ability. Secondly, there are no shows based on a Muslim background at this moment. This is also important for me as I feel the show is different from anything that’s on air currently.” Talking about his comeback after a long hiatus, he averred, “I took a break to do a film named Glory that is based on paranormal activity. The film being produced by Sahara has Diana Hayden as my co-star. Now that the film is complete, I am back to do shows.” Ask him if he’d be able to stand against the Khans in the Bollywood arena, he funnily remarked, “How long will the Khan’s rule; they are growing old now.” When pointed out to him that he is doing a very different kind of a show compared to the one’s he had done earlier, he quickly retorted, “Yes, it is not a youth show. Plus it is a more serious channel and the target audience is different. In fact, producers keep telling me that my character must be of a disciplined kind. But for me staying stable and not making faces or not moving my hands is difficult. However, my character demands that and though it is difficult for me, I am doing it.” Since the actor will be speaking some Urdu words, we asked him as to who is helping him to learn the language. “I have a diction teacher who has worked really hard on me so now I can talk a bit. I have learnt word like ‘numaish’ and there is also one very important dialogue that’s completely in Urdu but every time I utter it, I start smiling to myself. It goes like this ‘numaish paschim ki ada hai sharam purab ka gehna hai, is mulk mein auratein isi gehne se sajti hai’. I can’t say it in front of a mirror as it makes me giggle,” Karan observed. Do you identify with this role? “Though I can understand what Asad has been through as a child, but I cannot really identify with him.” However, the actor is not very happy with the 9:30 slot. “Had it been slotted in an earlier time slot, it would have been better for my audience because they are primarily children. In a way, it would have been good for me but the channel has its own strategy. And if the children don’t watch my show, I am sure their mothers will.” Since Karan plays a very intense role in the show we asked if he needs glycerine to make his eyes moist to which he promptly replied, “I don’t need glycerine to cry. I need the same to make it red. I can think of my life span to feel sad. There is a lot of sadness in my life.” The actor who had been carrying the lady killer tag very happily does not believe in flaunting it anymore. “I am trying to hide it as I am a married man now. My wife (Jennifer Winget) looks tiny but she is the only one who can keep me straight, so I have to keep the tag hidden,” he confided. How has life changed for him after marriage? “I sleep and wake up on time. Alcohol consumption and social gatherings are limited. I get home cooked food and I am leading a happy and healthy life.” Why did you opt for a low profile wedding when the entire world was waiting for it? “It was bigger than what I thought it would be. I just wanted to have a court marriage. But on the insistence of Jeniffer, we planned to have a small wedding with just a few close family members and friends attending. I had seven people from my side while Jeniffer’s close friends and family consisted of 99 people. Apart from that, we kept it away from the media as we were supposed to do a show about celebrities’ marriage and we had a tie up with the channel. But eventually, that did not happen.” How is Jeniffer as a wife? “She is a very responsible person and though she is much younger to me, she takes care of the entire house.” Do you both discuss work? “This is one good thing about being married to someone from the industry that you can go home and discuss work. It does not mean you only talk about work but you can take advice on the kind of shows you must do or, as a matter of fact, what I should be wearing and what my look should be like.” Well…Karan hope your show becomes a great success!!!