Upen Patel- the blue eyed boy of showbiz celebrities like Subhash Ghai, Abbas-Mustan, Suneel Darshan etc- is excited about having made his debut in the tinsel world with '36 China Town'.

Today, this beefcake from the modeling world is the most talked about newcomer. TWF correspondent Vickey Lalwani catches up with the actor

Q: What are your feelings about your debut in '36, China Town'?
A: It's indeed a dream role as far as I am concerned. I play a very stylish character in the film who is fun loving to the core. His USP is the fact that he is at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Besides the fact that none other than the Showman Subhash Ghai has produced the film, my happiness knew no bounds when I was told that Abbas-Mustan were to direct my debut film.

Having seen their stylish films like 'Aitraaz', 'Humraaz', 'Baazigar', 'Ajnabi' etc, I have always been an ardent fan of the duo.

Q: How did you go about it?
A: To get into the skin of my character in '36 China Town', I decided to sit with Abbas-Mustan fifteen days before the actual shooting started. It was they who instilled a lot of confidence in me and made me relax.

However, there was absolutely no workshop for the actors for the simple reason that every one in the film was very busy- whether it was Shahid Kapur or Akshaye Khanna or for that matter Kareena Kapoor.

Q: Some critics have said that you need fine tuning?
A: Every one is not a born actor. You can only learn with experience.

Q: Did you have any apprehensions about making your bow with a multi starrer like '36 China Town'?
A: To me it is the script of any film that is of paramount importance. I have always believed that it is the script, which is the actual hero of any film. I think that I have answered your question (smiles).

Q: Your's is a global name on the fashion front. Was your journey from modelling to films intentional?
A: I have modelled for products like Hugo Boss, Paul Smith and Zegna abroad and here my popular campaign is for Westside along with cricketer Yuvraj Singh.

I have always wanted to act in Hindi films. And to start with, I did 'Sun Sahiba Sun', my first remix video. Like every aspirant, I too had to go the hard way to achieve my goal. The wait was long... but worth it.

Q: Was Subhash Ghai tough as a producer?
A: Not at all. I could not have asked for a better launch. Subhashiji went out of his way to help me. I am grateful to him for believing and trusting me. I owe a lot to him. He was very supportive of a newcomer like me who didn't even speak the language. I started taking lessons in Hindi for eight months before starting work on the film.

Q: Were you ever apprehensive to be cast opposite big names?
A: Initially yes. I never thought I would be cast with superstars. But slowly everyone made me very comfortable and supported me. Since I am a very enthusiastic learner, I picked up a lot from all of them. Now we have all become good friends.

Q: You are being touted as the next John Abraham?
A: That's truly a compliment but I will not let that go into my head.

Q: Like so many big stars, are you too planning to do ramp shows, modeling or endorsing products?
A: As of now, I don't think I shall look back again. Fashion shows and ads were just a platform to enter films. And here I am, raring to go. I'm a quite storm that's about to hit the Hindi film industry in a big way (smiles).

Q: How many films have you got in your kitty?
A: Among the film which I look forward to see himself in the near future are Vipul Shah's 'Namaste London' in which I have been teamed opposite Katrina Kaif and Akshay Kumar, Abbas-Mustan's next film with Sanjay Dutt and Suneel Darshan's next venture starring Bobby Deol.

And I have the remake of the Vinod Khanna starrer 'Achanak'. Percept is producing that film. It's an honour to be playing something similar to Vinod Khanna Saab's role.