I’m doing a thriller to change my TV image: Anuj Saxena

NEW DELHI - Television soap star Anuj Saxena of “Kkusum” fame is looking for an image makeover and feels his Bollywood debut in a thriller is the best way out.

“I specifically decided to do a thriller for my debut because I wanted to do something different from what I have already done on television. I have done mainly intense roles, so I wanted to take on something else. One of the dangers of television is that people remember the character but not the actor.

“Even today many people refer to me as Abhay. So, with ‘Chase’ I am trying to establish Anuj Saxena,” Anuj told IANS in an interview.

“Chase”, which is being produced by Anuj’s production house Maverick and is looking at a November end release, also stars Udita Goswami in the lead. It is being directed by Jagmohan Mundhra.

The film, which was earlier titled “Begunaah”, is the story of a man who is punished for a crime he did not commit and his struggle to prove his innocence.

When probed regarding his role, the actor, who has been working hard on his look, said: “It’s not a different role in terms of the subject. The film is a thriller which is very normal nowadays. But it’s the action sequences and the presentation of the film that will make it unique.”

“Also for me the biggest USP of the film is that the director is Jagmohan Mundhra. He has his fans and he is known for making good and critically acclaimed films,” he added.

Anuj, who has an MBBS degree and is managing director of Elder Pharmaceutical Ltd., started his acting career through television with a show on Doordarshan called “Aasman Se Aaagey”, also starring Amrita Singh and Pankaj Kapoor. He later went on to become a part of popular daily soaps like “Kkusum”, “Kumkum”, “Kora Kaagaz” and “Saara Aakash” among others.

However, he left television in 2006 when “Kkusum” completed 1,000 episodes.

“I left television because it came to a saturation point. After doing five years of ‘Kkusum’, it was like doing the same thing again and again and there was nothing new that was happening. Everyone has to move on in life and take a decision. I don’t have any regrets,” said Anuj, whose first film under his production house was “Aloo Chaat”, starring Aftab Shivdasani and Aamna Sharif.

So, why didn’t he launch himself with his first production venture itself?

“I didn’t open my own production house to launch myself. I’m a businessman first, for me Maverick is a business house. The company has to make money and I’m responsible for that.

“So I select subjects that I feel as a producer I can produce and if a director feels that I’m suitable for a role then I might take it, not force my way into it,” he said.

The actor’s next is also a thriller that will go on floors in December.