Exclusive! Sagar Parekh reveals that he wasn't informed about being offered to play Samar in Anupamaa; says 'I would have refused...'

Anupamaa has been the No.1 show for the longest time, however with the recent track, the show witnessed a drop in their TRP ratings. Fans were extremely disappointed with Samar's death in the show and their most asked question to the makers and the actor was 'Why did you make an exit'? In an exclusive conversation with ETimes TV, Sagar Parekh gets candid about his journey with Anupamaa and also reveals the reason behind his exit.

For 3 years the show was continuously on the top, I don't blame anyone for my exit. The only reason for my exit is the dropping of TRP, it is the most deadly thing any maker would fear. There was no story, we had to shake up the audience. The channel had this strategy, in recent months every show had an element to shake up the audience. With Anupamaa, it turned into a shocker. We were expecting that there would be a twist ahead but didn't know that Samar would exit from the show, but we were very well prepared for the twist.

I am an actor who would support the storyline if the exit supports the story very well and is executed beautifully, which we did, then I would surely go ahead with it. Rajan sir is the mastermind and if he has said that something would happen like this then it will happen for sure. There is nothing to feel bad about, he is the one who makes everyone a star. I had done a good amount of work before this, but Anupamaa was surely life-changing.

It feels like a dream. I never thought that I would be a part of Anupamaa. When I was offered the role, I had no clue I was doing Anupamaa and that I was doing a replacement role. Had I known, I would have disagreed to take up the show out of insecurity or maybe people wouldn't accept me. But I am glad that happened and they didn't tell me earlier.

I knew who Samar was but I had no clue the character was so famous. But when the news was out I got so many calls from my friends. When they told me about the impact Samar had left, I started researching Anupamaa and I was watching Anupamaa day in and day out. I had a lot of pressure on me after that and I thought this was my only chance to make or break my career. I had lost my sleep in the initial days. I was really nervous about how the team would accept me as Samar.

My mother was on the sets of Anupamaa on the first day. That was the first time when my mother saw me shooting a scene live. I still remember that after shooting the first scene I got a standing ovation and everybody on the set showed belief in me that I could pull this character. My mother was in tears and we had to stop the shoot and I introduced her to everyone.

There are creative differences in many shows. Especially when an actor who has been experienced would have such differences or question the writing but I have never seen Rupali ma'am or Sudhanshu sir having such doubts. There used to be suggestions and we all would positively make changes including the director and crew. They understood the story and all of us worked as a team.

It is very rare to have such immensely talented actors be it Rupali Ma'am, Sudhanshu Sir, Madalsa or Gaurav doing a show together. All of them are immensely talented in their craft. TV is a medium which is called the school of acting and when I entered the show, I was curious to learn. I wanted to learn why Anupamaa is the No.1 show and what makes it a class apart. To my surprise, everything was pretty normal like all other shows. The most unique part of the show is that we are quick with our scenes and we all work as a team.

There are times when the actors try to do their best in someone else's scene and snatch away their limelight. But I haven't experienced that in Anupamaa. All the actors had their own story and importance in the show. I think this is the most unique thing about Anupamaa. For almost two years I shot with them and every day used to feel new. There was a lot of creativity vested among all of us.

Anupamaa has become like a home, I am literally missing them. I had forgotten my social life. For the past 3-4 years I was continuously shooting, first it was Kaisi Yeh Yaariyaan and then Anupamaa so the cast became my family. I believe that this is something called moving forward and I am taking it positively. We do meet outside, I did actually get attached to Rupali Ma'am and Sudhanshu Sir. I got a lot of love from everyone. The biggest compliment I have received is from my co-stars on how they called me and said, 'Tu chala gaya toh maza nahi aa raha.'