‘You can’t act under pressure’

After the reality show Splitsvilla and starring in youth shows like Webbed and Yeh Hai Aashiqui, Hyderabad’s Shravan Reddy has bagged himself a role in Star Plus’ Dosti... Yaariyan... Manmarziyan. “I play the eccentric, quirky and easy-going guy Niel, who is a creative director of an ad agency. My character is urbane and very relatable,” says Shravan.

It’s just been a month since the show started and his character, Niel, has been hugely appreciated. So much so that it already has fan pages across various social media. But it’s a hectic schedule for Shravan. “I shoot for 15 to 16 hours a day, and it goes up to 18 hours at times. But you can’t complain because that’s how the TV industry works. Acting can never be done under pressure.

You always have hectic schedules and you have to abide by them. You finish shooting and all you can think about is going home and sleeping. And within a few hours you are expected to report to work again,” says Shravan. “I haven’t taken an off in the last 15 days. We have to shoot for hours and also have to make time for promotional activities, for which we also have to travel to other cities. Now with awards shows round the corner, we need to make time for the rehearsals as well,” he adds.

But would he consider a reality show instead of a daily soap considering the hectic schedule? “It is the visibility that matters. You just need something that will keep you in the loop,” he says. Yet, eventually, it is Bollywood that Shravan wants to land at. “I started doing TV auditions just for practice because getting auditions for movies were not easy. I then ended up being selected and that’s how I got my initial shows. But eventually it is Bollywood where I want to be.”