/> Manish Goel is jobless but happy with his decision to quit the soap Paraya Dhan. There has been a lot of speculation about why the tv star decided to walk out of Star's soap Paraya Dhan.

According to Star's creative head Shailja Kejriwal, "I feel Manish is a talented actor. After the immense popularity Manish and his wife Poonam Nirula achieved on Nach Baliye, I saw he had no serials on hand. I got him into our soap Paraya Dhan.

After thirty episodes Manish this week decided to walk out of Paraya Dhan because he had to wait for a couple of hours for his shot. He failed to understand that there were 18 other actors on the set. His time was being paid for, so Manish should just have been more professional and patient."

Manish has another more stories to tell. He blames the serial's producer Sanjay Wadhwa for his ouster from the serial. "I'm not a mad man to leave my only serial without a back-up plan. From Day 1, Mr Wadhwa wanted me out. He thought I charged too much money.

But since the channel instructed him to sign me he had no choice. Since we're paid day-wise my work was being deliberately minimized on the sets. I was being forced into a corner repeatedly through deliberate glitches and delays."

Manish chose to do this serial for a specific reason. "At this juncture I only want to do roles that will help me grow as an actor. I selected Paraya Dhan because my look and character of a romantic goonda really appealed to me. I had not shaved for a year even then I had to perform on stage, just to look the part.

I put my whole and soul in the soap. I only do one soap at a time. And this was my first soap since Nach Baliye 11 months ago. Though the soap was about six sisters I was excited when the producer assured I've a meaty role requiring. To my dismay I found myself shooting for not even an hour per day.

I'd be sitting around the whole day and suddenly when it was pack-up time they'd wake up and start cramming my shots asap. You won't believe this, but out of thirty days I shot for only four days! I called up the producer and asked him how I could support my wife and baby if I work only four out of thirty days."

Manish gets progressively agitated. "My wife has stopped working. Our baby has started going into play school. I expect a certain kind of money to come to me. Paraya Dhan wasn't providing me with that kind of sustenence. Out of the 25-odd episodes so far I haven't figured in 20-25 scenes."

Matters came to a head last week. "I got frustrated beyond repair on Friday (December 8) when I had to wait the entire day in drag. I was on the sets on the dot at 1 p.m. I had 40 poppins in my hair, brassiere, blouse, chunni, the works.

I finally gave my first shot at 8.45 pm. Until then I wasn't even allowed to drop my pallu, or take a leak...There was no room for me to sit anywhere since the set was really crowded. I was pushed from one corner to another...

What really pissed me off was the producer's attitude. He told me I was being paid, so I should jolly well wait as long as I am asked to. You tell me, if this isn't highhandedness, what is?"

Manish is very happy to be out of this project. "I was really stressed out. I was treated like trash. When the producer signed me he didn't make one announcement about my presence in Paraya Dhan.

But when I was out, he called up every friend he had in the media. He never wanted me in the serial because he didn't want to pay me my price. Problems were created to make sure I was out. I finally obliged. Paraya Dhan was the biggest mistake of my life.

After Nach Baliye I turned down shows like Virasat, Pyar Ke Do Naam, Ankhiyon Ke Jharonkhon Se, and Woh Rehne Wali Mehlon Ki...What next? For now I need to gather my thoughts together."