Who is John Abraham? What do I know about him? The answer to that is almost nothing till yesterday. Being someone who doesn’t watch Bollywood films and not familiar with Bollywood stars, I honestly didn’t know much about John Abraham except that he is an model turned actor. So when his interview was aired in NDTV this week, it was natural curiosity that took me to watch it. Titled Euro Mania, it was a casual chit-chat with John Abraham with a special impetus on the ongoing Euro2008 and football. I was aware of his interest in football as he comes in one of the ads for EPL in ESPN and also being an official ambassador for Euro 2008. But the next one hour of his interview was very impressive- his attitude, his humility and his striking realism. In India or for that matter anywhere in the world, celebrities are always a thing of enigma. Be it their ego, their jazzy styles, their cool self-branded dresses or their sheer wealth and lifestyle, it all contributes to a love-hate relationship with the common man. Either you love them or you hate them. There are usually no middle grounds. There is the usual perception of celebrities having big egos and not knowing much about the common man’s lifestyle. Though these perceptions, in most cases, are purely based on media gossip, it is striking how true some of these things actually are. And it is in this regard that JA completely bowled me. For once here was a popular and successful actor who came across as strikingly honest in what he believes in. There were no complications. No egos. No fiddling around with his hair style. His enthusiasm was addictive, almost school-boyish you may be tempted to say. ... read more »