SAMIR KOCHCHAR tells JYOTHI VENKATESH that though he is hosting IPL Season 2, any day he prefers to take up acting rather than anchoring, though he is comfortable as far as anchoring is concerned.

You are one of the hosts for the current Indian Premier League Season 2. How do you feel?
It is the kind of been there done it sort of euphoria for me, because I had hosted the IPL Season 1 too last year.

When did your association with sports really begin as a host?
I had hosted a show called Full Toss on Hungama TV when the channel was launched. It was an indoor cricket tournament for kids. In fact, my association with sports as an anchor really began then.

How did you bag the offer to play the host for IPL Season 1?
It was when the channel Sony called me up and offered me the show as a host that I decided to give IPL Season 1 a shot. It is exciting to be a live sports broadcaster.

It is what I call a Bollywood meets cricket show. I will be there as an actor who loves the game and also knows how to anchor. You cannot have an actor who just cannot talk impromptu while hosting a cricket show.

How did you prepare yourself to be the host of IPL?
To prepare myself as a host, for the IPL Season 1, I had to learn a lot about cricket, because I had played football for Delhi Zonal 11.

I will host the first part of the tournament from Mumbai and the second part from Johannesburg, Cape Town, Prettoria and Durban.

For the first time I will be there on the greens with all the panelists. Having hosted IPL Season 1 earlier, I now have to see that I do not repeat the mistakes that I had committed earlier, like fumbling at times.

Do you think it is a cake walk to be the host of a show like IPL Season 2?
It will not be a cake walk but very stressful for me because my director will be on the ear piece and not in front of me. Even though I have had the experience of having hosted the first season, before the match starts, butterflies will be there in my stomach this time too.

What was your reaction when you were offered the show for the second time too?
I felt happy, thrilled and blessed to have been chosen to host the show this time too, because it is the biggest platform which fetches a lot of TRPs with 169 countries all over the world watching you live.

Is it a conscious effort on your part not to act in any fiction based TV serial?
I have been offered a lot of TV shows but I have been steadfastly turning down all the offers. If you are given the script in the morning and told to deliver it by evening every day, it becomes a job and I hate it because you tend to lose passion for the art but at the same time I have immense respect for people who can

When was your first tryst at anchoring on TV?
At the age of just 18, I was the youngest news broadcaster for Jain TV, though I was recognized a lot when I anchored India's first ever daily sex talk show Dangerous, in which Kamal Siddhu was my co-anchor.

Given a choice, what is your first preference- acting or anchoring?
Any day, I'd always prefer acting to anchoring, though I am quite comfortable as far as anchoring is concerned.

Is it true that besides hosting shows and acting in films, you have also acted in a short film?
I have acted in a short film called The Mole directed by Salil Fernandes. I play an actor who has a facial mole and plays the role of a detective. It is a dark comedy about an actor who cannot act without the mole on his face. It is a tribute to Humphrey Bogart.

Is it true that you have also acted in a Telugu film?
Yes. I had acted in a Telugu film called Chintakayala Ravi with Venkatesh, Trisha and NTR Jr.

What is your role in the film Begunah?
In Begunah, which is an out and out commercial thriller, I play the interesting role of an undercover agent who is also a contract killer. My co-stars in the film are Anuj Saxena who is also producing the film, Udita Goswami and Rajesh Thakkar.

Are you playing the role of a villain in Shaadi Ke Side effects?
Yes. In the film Shaadi Ke Side Effects, I play the role of a Casanova who comes to destroy the marriage of Arbaaz Khan and Tara Sharma, as a blast from her past. Indrajeet Lankesh is directing Shaadi Ke Side Effects.

Is it true that you are acting with Sherlyn Chopra in Camera?
Yes. In the film Camera directed by Amol Shetge, I play the main lead. The film was shot in London. I play the role of a guy who is caught in a crime not committed by him and his girl friend. Mona Chopra alias Sherlyn Chopra is playing the leading lady in the film.

Do you have a film which is a tribute to Bicycle Thief?
In the film Cycle Kick, I play the role of a football coach. It is actually a guest appearance. Tom Alter plays yet another coach in the same film. It is a tribute to the all time classic Bicycle Thief.

Do you like your status as an eligible bachelor in the film industry?
My days of being an eligible bachelor are over, because right now I am in a relationship with Radhika Gulwad, who is into modeling besides having her own event company and we both are planning to get married by January next year.