MUMBAI: Actor Mohit Kumar makes his debut as Shravan on the show "Ek Duje Ke Vaaste 2". He considers the role a challenge, because his character's name is Shravan. The name was popularised by actor Namik Paul on season one of the show.

The first season of the show starred Nikita Dutta and Namik Paul as Suman and Shravan respectively. Now, even though the actors and storyline have changed, the names of the protagonist remain the same.

"People message me on Instagram. Everyone loved Namik as Shravan but I think when people watch the show, they will know that the storyline is different. Even the character is different. For a schoolboy role, the makers wanted a young actor," Mohit told IANS here.

So far, netizens haven't been too kind to Mohit and his co-star Kanikka Kapur, who replaces Nikita.

"In the beginning when we were putting posts on Instagram, people said, 'we want Namik and Nikita back'. I was happy with the trolls," he said.

"Had it been a fresh character, whatever I would have done would have been the best. Now at least there's the challenge that I have to do better than someone else. From the beginning I had thought that if people loved Namik so much then I would try to do 10 times better. So there was a motivation to do better work," he added.

He would get up in the morning and check Instagram and read what people had posted. "Then I would say 'okay, I will do better work today'. Comparing me with Namik...it was positive for me," said Mohit.

Interestingly, doing a television show wasn't on his mind when he packed his bags and left his hometown Haryana.

"I had stepped out to do 'masti' (fun). I went to Delhi. Luckily, I got good work, so I shifted to Mumbai. I was earning well while modelling. So I didn't have an interest in doing a TV show. Then suddenly I thought of trying it out," he said.

The process of giving auditions for shows soon started for him.

"Then within two months, I got selected for this show. I didn't want to do the typical 'saas bahu' show. I was offered two shows from Balaji earlier. But you know those typical shows like 'Jaadu, Naag, Naagin'...I don't want to do. They are boring," he said.

"Check any channel, you will mostly find this content. 'Ek Duke...' is fresh. I think only two shows have been made on Army. One was Shah Rukh Khan's 'Fauji' and the other was 'Left Right Left' in which Rajeev Khandelwal was there. So I was eager to do this show," he added.

Now, he is "hoping" to get the same success that Shah Rukh got after doing an Army-based show. "From this show, I have expectations that I'll do a movie after this," he concluded.

Set against army backdrop, "Ek Duje Ke Vaaste 2" will narrate the love story of Shravan and Suman.

The show will premiere on Sony Entertainment Television on February 10.