My top ten - Gaurav Sharma

My first break on television: I was working with a leading IT company and decided overnight to quit my career. It was a tough decision as I hadn’t done theatre or had any professional acting training. I just believed in myself and worked hard. When nothing seemed to be working out, I was about to go back to IT, but then, I got the most important call of my career. Yash Patnaik and Mamta Patnaik introduced me in a fantastic TV series called Jamunia on NDTV Imagine. I still remember jumping with joy when I got the news. I went to all the nearby temples to thank god and then threw a pizza party for my friends. It was something I can never forget.

My first autograph: While shooting for my show in Chhattisgarh, in east India we, sometimes, used to go for dinner at the highway food stalls. One night, when the entire cast of our show was chilling at a food stall and celebrating the launch of our show, a local police officer came to me and asked if I was the same guy on TV, and I told him yes. He was very excited and introduced me to his other colleagues and asked for my autograph. I signed a tissue and gave it to him. I was so happy and felt like it was the first reward for me as an actor.

My first award: In 2012, I started the journey of my first negative role on Indian TV as Rajkumar the terrorist in Diya Aur Baati Hum on Star Plus. The entire track got very popular and our show got the best ratings. In 2014, our show was awarded as the best show on television. Generally, antagonists are not given a chance to represent a TV show in award ceremonies, but my producer Shashi Mittal not only personally invited me but also gave me the honour of receiving the award too. I felt blessed to be part of such a wonderful show.

Buying my own house in Mumbai: It’s a dream for every actor to buy their own house and I bought mine in 2015. When I first entered my house, I realised how magnificent it is to know that every single brick, every single corner of this house is mine.

My first pet: I have a Saint Bernard dog named Baloo. I named him after Baloo the bear from The Jungle Book. It was a birthday gift for my fiancé but, I started loving him more than her. Baloo has a different kind of bonding with me. He sits next to me for hours and it seems like he understands what I am saying to him. He’s the best thing we could ever get.

My first job: I started working when I was completing my 10+2. I got my first job in my hometown Meerut, and worked as a sales executive for HDFC life insurance. It wasn’t easy, but getting a good job at such an early age was magical for me.

My parents’ 25th anniversary: I love to surprise my loved ones. I planned a surprise visit on my parent’s 25th anniversary. They had no clue that I was coming from Mumbai overnight to celebrate their anniversary with them. They were really happy. We went on a road trip to Rishikesh and it turned out to be a memorable time for us.

My marriage: On October 31, 2017, I got married to the love of my life, Priya. It was a dream come true for both of us as we planned to do a destination wedding and I had Goa in mind. We did a two-day ceremony in Goa with all our close friends and relatives.

Completing two years of my first comedy show: I did my first comedy show Nadaniyaan on Big Magic channel. People loved the show and it was the most popular show on the channel. I can’t forget the day when our channel head Tarun Katial gave me the honour to re-launch the channel logo.

When my mom first saw me shooting: My mom was an artist and used to play the sitar in her college days. She won the national level competition also, but, after marriage, she chose to quit her career to focus on her family. She wanted one of us to become an artist, so when she came for the first time on my set and saw me shooting she was smiling, but had tears in her eyes, and so did I.

Gaurav Sharma is a Mumbai-based actor and star of numerous acclaimed TV serials