Akshay Oberoi, who will next be seen as an obsessive lover in 'The Virgins', will showcase his painting skills in the upcoming short film.

Akshay, who has previously worked in films like `Isi Life Mein`, `Pizza` and `Laal Rang`, will star alongside Pia Bajpai and Divyendu Sharma in the short film, directed by Sandeep A. Varma.

`When Varma and I were discussing the character, costumes, mannerisms, it suddenly struck us that only someone with a strong creative pursuit would be so passionate and obsessive. And since I like to paint, we settled on that. I think the results on screen are fantastic,` Akshay said in a statement.

Talking about Akshay's acting skills, Varma said: `Akshay is a very intelligent actor, so I like to discuss and develop the character with him. Even for this short, he was there. The thought of his being a painter was a brainwave that came suddenly.

`Even though the whole take of this film is humourous, we wanted a finish and detailing, that would give it long shelf life.`

`The Virgins` will release on Thursday on YouTube.