Keith with kin

Manpriya Singh

It’s been a decade, since he popularly got stuck in the lift with a pretty little thing and had DJ Aqeel’s Shake It Daddy beats playing in the background. Somewhere along, even public memory got stuck with the image and Keith Sequeira continues to be the remix video guy or the one playing our favourite songs as the VJ.

Never mind 2013 film Sixteen or the fact that his role (of an author who transforms with the story) in the teenage drama with serious overtones was appreciated.

“The film despite doing well could not score on the visibility because of several industry and box office factors,” he shares, while all gung-ho about his upcoming Calendar Girls, out after a gap of one-and-a-half year. Despite lack of commercial visibility, it caught just the right eye. “The reason I got Calendar Girls was because Madhur Bhandarkar had come for the screening and noticed my performance.”

All over the place

Currently, it’s been a crazy schedule comprising meetings and promotions for the upcoming Calendar Girls. Something even his hashtag Tweets have amply ensured; the Calender countdown begins... “It’s a big thing for a newcomer to be working with Madhur Bhandarkar. So, what made me say yes has definitely been the film’s maker. Moreover, the character I play that of a sports manager, is a very intense role with a lot of layers to it.”

Pretty much what he looks for before signing onto the dotted line. “It’s the kind of depth the character has and whether I’ll be able to contribute to it. It doesn’t matter who I play but what I play.”

A lost list

Any query on dream roles elicits a list of role models because that is the league he is aiming for. “I really admire Irrfan Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Aamir Khan. These are the kind of actors I admire.”

The fact that Bollywood so far hasn’t done absolute justice or lined up with perfect combination of quality and quantity in scripts doesn’t matter. “Never mind, I’m still at a nascent stage. After 40 years, my grandchildren will hopefully like when they watch me onscreen.”

On the go

Meanwhile, there’s travels, taking him far and away, blogging keeping him busy and connected. “Oh yes, I was in Australia recently, The Great Barrier Reef which attracts a lot of tourists. It’s back packers’ paradise.” He adds, “Apart from leisure, travelling helps you mature as an actor, because of the people you meet and learn from. Somebody with a quirkiness, yet somebody else with another trait.” Then there’s modelling. “It’s never a goodbye to modelling.”

manpriya@tribunemail.com