The serial kisser is back. He is not the one who can Murder you with your looks but his panache makes girls scream Ashique Banaya Apne. Sreya Basu catches up with the Bollywood Gangster…oopps, rockster. Emraan Hashmi on the latest in his life and career.

Let’s start with your latest release Jannat.
Jannat is a love story with the background of cricket and the dark alleys of the game. The subject is contemporary where heaven is all about money, luxury and crime.

Are you comfortable playing a hero with negative attributes?
Generally in Hindi films we take it for granted that a hero should be all white a character while it’s the villain who will portray a black character.

In this film I play a grey character that people can relate to. After all none of us are all white or black, but grey. The first half of the film portrays Arjun (my character in Jannat), a reckless youth obsessed with moneymaking and in the process gets into cricket betting and match fixing racket.

But in the later half audience will know about the circumstances that led him to this racket and they will feel sorry for him.

You play a match fixer in the film. How have you prepared yourself for your character?
I met a few cricket bookies in Mumbai to get a better understanding of their life and life style. Besides I read all the cricket betting controversies that took place in the last 30 years.

Is Jannat deliberately released during the IPL?
It was not deliberate but it’s good that the film is released during the IPL. Cricket betting is something that you can never put on check.