By: Faisal Saif

Arbaaz Khan is very excited and nervous at the same time while his first directorial debut 'Dabangg 2' approaches the release date. Very few know Arbaaz started his career as an assistant director to Mahesh Bhatt at the age of 19.

And at the age of 24, Arbaaz got his first major break as an actor in Abbas-Mustan's 'Daraar'. But his career as an actor never saw the real expected light.

"I did about 40-odd films but since I was not getting too far as an actor, my mind was constantly on the lookout for something else. That is when I produced Dabangg and was successful. " says Arbaaz Khan.

Dabangg 2 was earlier supposed to be directed by Abhinav Kashyap who also directed 'Dabangg' but somehow things never got materialized here too.

On asking about him taking up the Director's chair, Arbaaz replied "Abhinav Kashyap, the director of the film, was to work on the sequel, but in a couple of weeks, I got an SMS from him saying he did not want to be a part of the sequel and had his personal reasons for opting out and I realized there was no point trying to convince him. After a lot of deliberation, I realized that I was the next best guy to take over the helm of affairs as nobody had the closeness or attachment to the project that I had. "

On working with the superstar brother Salman Khan, Arbaaz shares "Salman is a brilliant and spontaneous actor. He knows the camera and knows his audience. This comes after many years of experience. He is so much at ease with himself. He is an achiever and I give him that space, privacy and respect. He is a great Star. "