Mohit Malik on quitting Kulfi Kumar Bajewala: Won’t look convincing playing father to grown-up girls

Mohit Malik is set to bid adieu to the TV show 'Kulfi Kumar Bajewala', which will take a time leap in a few weeks. There have been talks of the actor quitting the show for a while now, but Mohit had always denied the buzz. However, this time around he seems to have made up his mind. (By: Tanvi Trivedi)

“I was fine with playing father to two small girls in the show. But I do not want to play a father to grown-up girls because I don’t think it will look convincing.”

“It has been an emotional journey for me. I started working on the show exactly two years ago and it’s time now to say goodbye. As they say, all good things come to an end. The show explored the father-daughter bond beautifully and I guess the makers felt a leap was necessary. I liked the fact that they focused on the father-daughter bond and did not try to introduce a romantic angle for my character Sikandar (Mohit Malik) after Nimrat (Shruti Sharma) died in the show. Though he married Loveleen, the show only revolved around Sikandar and his two daughters.”

Ask Mohit if the change in the time slot of the show resulted in a drop in the ratings, and he says, “I don’t think about ratings so much. It was a decision that was taken for the show and I respect it. At the end of the day, I lived the life of Sikandar for two years and now I will go back to being Mohit.”

“I don’t feel that if you play a father to a grown-up girl or boy, you get typecast or slotted. It’s just that in this case, it didn’t come from within that I should play father to a grown-up Kulfi. I felt that I wouldn’t be able to do justice to the role.”

“I am happy that I got to play Sikandar, which has been my toughest role till date. In 'Doli Armaanon Ki', I had played Samrat, who was an angry man. Anger comes easily to anyone, but to get emotional and show compassion is difficult. 'Kulfi Kumar Bajewala' also set a benchmark for all those who feel that content on TV is regressive.”

“In a few weeks, Mohit’s character, who is currently suffering from brain tumour on the show, will be shown dead. “I am still shooting, and so the feeling that I will no longer get to spend time with my on-screen daughters (Akriti Sharma and Myra Singh) is yet to sink in. I shot for the show like they were my real daughters and it’s going to be tough.”

Talking about his future plans, he says, “I plan to take a short break and then again get back to work. I want to do different roles.”