He is completely bald. That's the first thing that you notice about Raj Banerjee, aka 'Shotgun' in Star One's Special Squad.
But as he greets you, you cannot but be taken in by his natural charm and affable nature. Raj is all set to make his Bollywood debut (mainstream cinema) with Mirch Masala (working title), which will be released early next year.
Raj, who plays a Bihari art graduate in the Aroop Aikari directed thriller, has a couple of shows in his kitty as well.
" I want to do 15 days of television and the rest films, what I am looking at now is good work, I don't care about viewership!" says Raj, who has quite a checkered past.
Our sources tell us that the actor was also offered a role in Star One's India Calling, but he did'nt take it up.
Interestingly, Raj has worked with Tata for seven years (starting at the age of 18), before embarking on his acting career.
Perhaps, it is here that the track gets a little filmi --- At the age of 25, he took voluntary retirement. " I am a pensioner," he laughs! "I will be eligible till I am 60 and that's a long time coming!" he adds.
You bet! It takes a lot of guts to leave a comfortable job on an impulse, leave grumbling parents at home...and embark on a journey to realise your dreams...Raj did all that and finally he seems to have got his due!
Cheers to that!