Mumbai, Aug 3 (IANS): He could well have followed his father, Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) president Ramvilas Paswan, into the electoral battlefield. But Chirag Paswan decided to try his luck in movies before making the inevitable switch to politics.
"Politics excites me. I cannot say no to politics because I have been born and brought up in that atmosphere. Politics flows in my blood. I have actively campaigned for and with my father during most of the state elections. So in the later days of my life, I know I will walk that path. Eventually I know I will give in to politics, but for now, movies are my priority," Chirag told IANS in an interview.
Also, his father wanted him to prove himself in some other field before joining politics.
"My father was more than happy when I told him that I want to be an actor. He wanted me to prove myself in any other field first before entering politics because he knew politics is something that will come to me on a platter. So he wanted me to go through my own struggle.
"My family always knew I was inclined towards acting. So they were very supportive. My family knows I will never do anything that will bring a bad name to my family."
A computer engineer by profession, Chirag, 28, is making his debut with "One And Only" opposite Kangana Ranaut and says working in the movie is living a long-cherished dream.
"Since I was a little kid, I wanted to see myself on the big screen. So I grew up with the passion of becoming an actor. Today, I'm living my dream and it's wonderful," he said.
Directed by Tanveer Khan, "One And Only" is produced by Anuj Saxena's Maverick Productions. The love story also stars Sagarika Ghatge and Neeru Bajwa and is about the journey of a boy from a broken family.
Being a love story, the film has intimate scenes and Chirag admits he was initially hesitant to do them.
"I was extremely embarrassed and shy when I had to do an intimate scene in Goa. It was during the shoot of a romantic song. Doing it in front of the entire unit made me feel very uncomfortable," he said.
When it comes to his co-star Kangana, Chirag said she's more like a mentor on the sets.
"Kangana is a thorough professional. She has been extremely supportive and helped me a lot. She guided me too. I couldn't have asked for a better co-star in my first film.
"I have not taken any formal acting training and I come from a totally different background. So, Kangana helped me with few technicalities that I should know."