Ali to enter Ye Rishta Kya Kehlaata Hai

Ali Merchant is all set to enter Ye Rishta Kya Kehlaata Hai (Star Plus) tonight as Akshara's dream guy.

Describing his role, Merchant says, "I play Rituraj, a businessman who is very honest and understated in his nature. He is helpful and holds immense respect for elders. He is the perfect match for Akshara."Merchant's really wanted to work with this particular production house- Director's Kut. That was the main reason he took up this offer. He says, "I don't usually take up cameos because I am not comfortable with the production. But here, I know the entire unit and they are like family. Rajanji has always been very sweet. He called me for the role in mid-Jan and I simply couldn't refuse. I am the only person for whom they had a separate room."The actor says his look in Ye Rishta… will be poles apart from his personal style. "My look is very different from what I actually am! I'll be a clean-shaven, formally-clothed guy with a generic hairstyle. In real life, I am very funky when it comes to dressing."Talk of how he resembles his character, Merchant says, "In all ways perhaps except the look. I have all the qualities of Rituraj but it is our style of dressing that sets us apart."According to Merchant, the role will be a cameo of five episodes and there will be a major twist that emerges with his exit. He says, "It will be love at first sight for Akshara and Rituraj but their marriage won't take place because of some obstacles. Therein lies the major twist." So, is there a chance Rituraj comes back to Akshara's life after she marries another suitor? To this, Ali replies, "I have no clue about that. As of now, I've wrapped up with my shooting."

Ali Merchant to launch 'AlSara'....

Ali Merchant is all set to get into construction business, and will launch his project which is named 'AlSara' in April...

Ali Merchant who was last seen in 9X' Rubii has suddenly gotten busy after lying low for few months. The actor who is all set to enter as the new lead in Sahara One's Ghar Ek Sapna is planning to expand his avenues to construction business too. The young lad who is basically from a business oriented family now plans to construct buildings. "This project of mine will be named 'AlSara' which is got by combining my name and Sara's name", quips Ali. "I have spacious land areas at Neral, which is near Matheran. I am going to Matheran next week to finalize things. I plan to launch my project somewhere in April. I will be inviting all my friends - Jatin, Priya, Jay basically my entire gang, and will be inviting media too", adds the actor. When asked whether the actor will build corporate firms, he quips, "No, there is a high demand for colleges there, and I plan to make one for the people there".

Ali Merchant in the Firing Line...

Describe your self in one word: Child-like

The Quality you look for in your Ideal Mate:

Values

One Accessory you always have with you:

A blue turquoise that I wear around my neck.

A song always on your lips:

Currently, Pehli Nazar from the movie Race.

One Indian TV show you love: Left Right Left and Remix.

Three Things you cannot live without: Credit Cards, Family and Friends.

Best Pick-up line that has been used on you, or by you:

Well, I used to pick up lines in college, but not any more. I didn’t really have any in particular. Now a days, girls come to me saying that they have seen me somewhere, and after a few moments they come up again, stating that they saw me in Amber Dhara…

Any particular incident that has left you in shock:

Actually there was one incident when I was clubbing, a girl came up to me, and introduced her self and gave me her room number and asked me to meet her there. I was in a complete state of shock as nothing like that had happened to me before. (Blushes)

Your Biggest Strength:

When I meet people, I generally focus on their positive qualities and ignore their negative ones.

Favorite Movie Dialogue: I actually love revamping movie dialogues. For example, the dialogue in Sholay, ‘Kitne Aadmi The’, the reply should have been ‘Sarkar, sab Aurtein Thi’, or ‘Suvar Ke Bacche’ the reply should be – ‘Jee Papa’ (laughs)

If not an actor, you would have been:

I would have been a director.

Your favorite hang-out place: Jay, Jatin and I used to hang out at our friend Shakti’s place and have our in-house parties. I’m a complete in-house party freak.
__________________

Sara-n-Ali head for vacation

The prolonged TV strike has come as a blessing in disguise for actress Sadhana AKA Sara Khan, who finally managed to find time to visit her family back home in Bhopal. Sara decided to head to Bhopal along with her beau Ali Merchant, who took this opportunity to meet Sara’s family and spend time with them.

Based on insiders, Ali is trying his best to bond with Sara’s family as he is planning a family picnics for the kids and a shopping spree for the ladies of the house. Ali shared from Bhopal, “When we were out boating we were mobbed by fans and had to call for security personnel. It is fun being with Sara and her family in Bhopal.”
So while ‘Bidaai’ fans continue to see re-runs on the tube, Sara is away in Bhopal fulfilling her ‘Babul Ka Sapna’ of spending quality time with his star daughter before her ‘Bidaai’ to Mumbai.

I frequently pamper myself, says Ali Merchant

Fitness plays a major role in our lives; staying fit and healthy has become essential these days and the pressure is on for celebrities. Staying in shape is a must for those in the public eye – so, it is time to see what they are doing to win the battle of the bulge. For our Tellywatch column on fitness, Ali Merchant talks about fitness and healthy living.My workout regime…I work out five days a week for an hour each day and if I have the time, I work out twice a day. I alternate between cardio and weights. I concentrate on two body parts each day.My daily diet…I start my day with 30ml of Aloe Vera juice, which tastes really bad. Then I have cornflakes with a sugar free sachet. Then I take protein chocolates, some roasted stuff and dry fruits. I avoid rice completely, so I take chapattis without oil for lunch with some dal and stuff. I also take a protein shake and avoid dinner. This pattern works best for my body and I mostly stick to this diet. Of course, I let myself go easy on holidays.On a rainy day, my idea of a workout would be…I like to take it a little easy by just giving a workout to my legs. I also would like to take my girlfriend for a long drive.My idea of relaxation…going to a spa and pampering myself completely. I frequently take body massages.Size zero to you is…it is just a trend. It is a concept of being the thin, thinner, thinnest kind. It means spoiling your health slowly. I crave for…cakes, ice cream, caramel popcorn, prawns, galaxy chocolate. I also crave a smoke at times although I have almost quit smoking. A lifestyle change I’m trying to make…I want to avoid clubbing, which I am trying to do. The reason is because I am quite tired of it and my sleep gets affected.Fitness mantra…just focus on what you are working out. Don’t look for changes in your body frequently. Do so only when people identify changes in you, which can motivate you a lot.

Ali Merchant on a ‘car’ousel

Ali Merchant who is currently seen in Zee Next’s Ek Thi Rajkumari is on cloud nine these days. He has recently bought a new car a Diacor and is pretty excited about it.
“Well I bought the car just last night. I wanted to have a nice and big car since very long and I finally have one,” says Ali.
So why a Diacor? “Diacor is a big car which consists of a microwave cum fridge and there is enough space behind where I can rest. Well currently I’m shooting for only one show so I have time to go home and relax at home. But soon I’ll be taking another show so then I’m very sure that there won’t be enough time to even sleep so I’ll make this car my mini home,” he chirps.
“Besides that it’s a big car. Even I like to be on top thus this goes with my dreams of making it big,” he adds.
What about the new project you are referring to? “Well nothing has been finalised as yet. I can only reveal details by mid of June,” he states.
And Ali is not content with just one car he also dreams of buying a Sedan soon.

Ali Merchant: No Marriage Now

The latest buzz in tellyland suggests that lovers Ali Merchant and Sara Khan are keen to tie knot. Recently in fact we also heard that the two had infact got married secretly in Goa. But actor Ali Merchant says that while the two of them are very much together, they haven’t got married yet.





“This is not at all true… We did go to Goa with a couple of friends but just for a holiday, we didn’t get married!” says Ali refuting the rumours. Ali says with the television strike on, the duo decided to spend some time with each other and so they headed to Goa.“Sara wanted to show her home town Bhopal to me as I always kept telling her that her native town is like a village so we went to Bhopal first. Then we came back from there and I went to Goa with a couple of my friends which included Jay and Jatin. Sara too wanted to come over as she was very keen to see the beaches of Goa so later on she dropped in with some of her friends,” explains Ali.So when are they planning to get married?“I am just 23!” exclaims Merchant, “Marriage might happen after 2-3 years. We haven’t even thought about it as of now… but one thing I can assure you is that when ever it happens, it will happen in a very grand way!”.The couple first met each other at a Sansui Award Function where Ali fell for Sara almost immediately. Very soon they discovered that they were in love with each other and luckily their families too approved their relationship.Presently the duo is busy with their respective commitments. While Sara is shooting for her daily Bidaai, Ali has just wrapped up his daily soap Rubii. They will be soon seen as guest host on the dance reality Nach Baliye.

Ali Merchant is all set to get into construction business, and will launch his project which is named 'AlSara' in April...

Ali Merchant who was last seen in 9X' Rubii has suddenly gotten busy after lying low for few months. The actor who is all set to enter as the new lead in Sahara One's Ghar Ek Sapna is planning to expand his avenues to construction business too.The young lad who is basically from a business oriented family now plans to construct buildings. "This project of mine will be named 'AlSara' which is got by combining my name and Sara's name", quips Ali."I have spacious land areas at Neral, which is near Matheran. I am going to Matheran next week to finalize things. I plan to launch my project somewhere in April. I will be inviting all my friends - Jatin, Priya, Jay basically my entire gang, and will be inviting media too", adds the actor.When asked whether the actor will build corporate firms, he quips, "No, there is a high demand for colleges there, and I plan to make one for the people there".Well, we wish Ali all the very best for this venture of his!!

Sarah Khan and Ali Merchant, the next couple in the making ...

Surprise, Surprise as Telly Buzz gives its ardent readers a first hand information on the love-life of Ali Merchant and Sarah Khan!!

It is said that ‘Marriages are made in Heaven’ and our telly land is not far behind when it comes to actors falling in love and getting married to live blissfully!The latest update on this is that cupid seems to have struck the dashing Ali Merchant and the very young ‘Bidaai’ girl Sarah Khan!! If sources are to be believed, the duo seems to be very much in love and have been spotted together many a times.When Telly Buzz managed to buzz Sarah Khan to know more on her love life, the very shy actress confessed, “Yes, it is true that we both are seeing each other. We have not yet decided on getting married as we have to concentrate on our careers first”.Ali Merchant too was not far behind in declaring that he is in love. “It is true that we are serious about our relationship”, says Ali. The actor who surely seems to be bitten by the love-bug could not stop himself as he said, “Sara is very sweet and caring. The very loving attribute in her is that she is innocent and does not have ego problems”. Elaborating further on how they both met, Ali confides, “We met first at the Sansui Awards. Sara also used to visit my mom’s parlor regularly. Above all, one of my close friends Jay Bhanushali, who I know for nearly seven years, introduced me to Sara”.It is also heard that Ali Merchant and Sara Khan were approached by Balaji Telefilms for their new reality show on Sony, Gharwali Baharwali which will see a guy dancing with his reel life as well as real life partner. But they could not accept this offer as Sarah is bound by a contract for Rajan Shahi's Bidaai...

Ali Merchant dons the role of Akshat in Amber Dhara..

He represents the ‘New Generation Bloke’ of the Television Industry. The Dashing Ali Merchant rose to fame with his character of Bharat Agarwal in Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki; he has the credit of portraying versatile roles in Sshh Koi Hai and Mano Ya Na Mano. Now this ‘Gen Next’ lad is all set to play Akshat in Sony’ Amber Dhara, and get into the lives of the conjoined twins. Here is a chit chat with the young debonair star Ali Merchant..

Welcome as the new Akshat, how is the experience so far..

It feels good. I got a chance to catch up on a few episodes, and have been shooting for the last 5 days. I guess I am slowly blending in with Akshat's character. I was briefed about the characters by the team and I have tried my best to adapt to the story line.

How do you plan to fit in as Akshat, with the exit of Harshad now?

Well, it's going to take a while for the audience to adapt to the change, I have brought in my own style to the character, but there are certain parameters that I cannot cross, its like, I have a boundary that I can’t completely do what i want to, since the character was played by someone else till now.

Take us thro’ your other projects..

I was part of the new generation in Kahaani, that was my big break you can say. I used to do Sshhh Koi Hain, and I continue doing that, and for 4 days a month, I shoot for a live game show called Bollywood Bonanza. Kahaani was fun, I got to be completely negative, and I really enjoyed doing that.

Then why did you quit Kahaani?

Well, my one year contract with them got over, and then I just decided to opt out of it, as it wasn’t something I was happy doing.

You played a negative there, and an extreme positive here, your take on both?

I loved playing negative, because you have the liberty to do whatever you want. In a positive role, there are certain rules that you have to follow, and in the extreme negatives, people begin seeing you as negative. My dadi used to always tell me that she has begun feeling that I am like Bharat, but I had to convince her that I am not (laughs)

So, are you trying to break thru the negative image with Akshat's character?

Yes, absolutely!

So in real life, who do you relate to more, Bharat or Akshat ?

I guess I am a good boy from the inside, but I portray a bad image.

How is it working with the girls, Amber and Dhara?

Oh its been fun!! The girls, the director, the entire unit is all simply rocking!

Final question, your take on the concept.

The concept is something that has never been done, I don’t know how long will it go for, as long as the audience likes it, the show will keep going on... See, with a saas bahu show that is like a show like balaji, one can predict that the show might hit a few years, and given a generation leap, it is going to extend, but with shows that are so real like Amber Dhara, one can’t really say... Harshad Chopra as Akshat had really won the hearts of one and all. Now Ali Merchant is right up there, to give the character of Akshat, his name, flair and his trademark style.. Here's wishing Ali Merchant all the very best for his new role!!