Characters with strong shades of gray is what interests Bollywood actor Emran Erfan Anwar Hashmi, who plays a street smart bookie caught up in a betting racket in his latest film 'Jannat.'

Emran, whose pearances 'Kalyug', 'Gangster' and 'Aawarapan' portrayed him in characters who are gray, reckless and negative in appearance, says he enjoys such roles compared to conventional 'goody-goody' heroes.

"Typical Bollywood heroes are very boring. There is no growth or realism in the characters. It is just difficult for me to connect to the typical hero thing," says the actor who began his career in the film industry with 'Footpath' in 2003.

"For me, it is very important to have someone who has flaws, who has gray shades. We all make mistakes and then redeem ourselves, That's what I saw in my character in 'Jannat' and I jumped to it." he says.

After 'Footpath' he did three films, 'Murder,' 'Zeher' and 'Tumsa Nahin Dekha,' all in the same year, 2004.

His next films 'Kalyug', 'Aashiq Banaya Aapne' and 'Jawani Diwani' in 2005 stamped him as a 'serial kisser,' a tag that the 28-year-old actor is not comfortable with and terms as "unfortunate."

"Just having one or two scenes does not really make you a serial kisser but unfortunately that's how it is," says Emran adding that as long as his audience is fine with it.

"I fail to imagine how this can create so much hype, curiosity or media attention but I am fine with it as long as my film does well. Media always hypes these things but that's okay as long as my fans like it," he told on his recent trip to the capital to promote 'Jannat,' that releases on May 16.