Exclusive: Shagun Pandey of Mera Balam Thanedaar; 'I Wasn't Given Anything on a Platter'

Shagun Pandey embarked upon a new journey of Inspector Veer Pratap Singh in Colors' show Mera Balam Thanedaar. Pandey plays the role of a righteous cop who indulges in an illegal practice unknowingly. This is Shagun's fourth show with Shashi Sumeet Productions. In a candid chat with Pinkvilla, Shagun spoke at length about bagging the show, newbie Shruti Choudhary, playing a cop, and more.

Shagun Pandey on doing his fourth consecutive show with the same production house

When asked about being in a comfort zone with the production house, Shagun Pandey said, "Yes, this is my fourth show with Shashi Sumeet Productions but that doesn't mean that our connection has landed me yet another lead role in their show. I wasn't given the show on a platter. I have done a lot of hard work to bag the show. I'm on a rigorous diet to look like what I'm looking like in the promos. The Mr. India pageant trainer has been training me and I have groomed myself a lot to fit into the character."

He added, "Although I have a strong bond with the producers, they're like my family and have trusted a lot in me. I've worked with them on Shubh Aarambh, Kyun Utthe Dil Chhod Aaye, and Meet; each show had different prerequisites and I worked hard to bag all of these."

Have a look at a recent promo of Mera Balam Thanedaar

Pandey continued, "When I was informed about this show, they'd told me that they were also auditioning other actors, and trust me, many popular actors were being considered, but I worked on myself so much that the makers felt that I fit the bill and thus I was offered the part."

Shagun Pandey on prepping for the show

Shagun stated that he worked religiously for three months to bag the show. He said, "I had to lose weight, get into a certain shape, learn few things, get the linguistics correct, and then come back to audition for the show so that the makers trust me with such a big project."