Exclusive: Nakuul Mehta on quitting Bade Achhe Lagte Hain 2: It was the right time to go

Though quitting is not a word Nakuul Mehta would like to use, for him, his journey with Bade Achhe Lagte Hain 2 has come to an end. After a year and a half on the show which has “been a satisfying, enriching and fulfilling journey”, he says, he feels ready to go.

Nakuul explains, “The show got a lot of love though many people had doubts when we started as because we took on an iconic show (and remade it). But for it to have the journey and reach out to people the way it has, I think has been truly special. I feel creatively, full having been a part of it for so long. The story is going to places and I feel going ahead there’s nothing new I can bring to it. I will miss playing Ram.”

The actor, who has done three TV shows in his 10-year-old career, admits that post his last TV show, Ishqbaaz, he was exhausted and that’s why took a four-year break. Nakuul shares, “I feel I have paid my dues to the makers and the audiences in the last 18 months. Moreover, you must know when to go and now is the time to go. It is tempting to stay on and continue with a show and receive the love but what more is my question. I look at challenging myself. I have had patience and resilence to say no to a lot of things and preserve myself for bigger things.”

Nakuul states he doesn’t do too many shows as it is injustice to play different roles every few months when the audience is so invested in your TV characters. “Once an audience buys into you for playing a Shivay or Ram, I feel it’s injustice to take up another character in two months and say, ‘Now accept me as this (character)’. Now I work for credibility and respect. Today, you could be a star on television or film, but all of us are in the business of wanting to borrow the viewers’ time. And I don’t take that for granted. For me, I need to go back live life again and return to the sets as on set you only summarize life. That helps me bring new things to my audience is so that I can sort of give them something new and the credibility of wanting to sample my next project continues. That’s kind of hard to earn in this industry is what I’ve learnt along the way.”