I am overworked,” says Rohit Roy. Sitting in his hotel room in Delhi on his birthday recently, giving interviews and posing for pictures, he wasn’t too happy with his packed schedule.
“I would like to spend time with my family on my birthday, but here I am, talking to you,” he complains. “Not having enough time to spend with the family is the biggest drawback of our profession. But I guess one has to reconcile to the things one can’t help,” he adds as an afterthought.

In the city to promote his latest telly show, Yeh Hai Jalwa on 9X, he sounds upbeat about his role. He explains, “I am mentoring a group of phoren babes who are learning to dance to Bollywood numbers. I must confess that all the other mentors are jealous of me because they think my team is the most exciting one. They keep waiting for my girls to arrive on the sets, and I’ve even got offers from them to swap teams,” he laughs. But isn’t it difficult to be a mentor?

“No,” says he. “It’s true that some of them have not even seen Hindi film songs, but they are honest about learning to dance. Their uniqueness is the USP of my team.”

First a participant on a dance-based reality show, then the host of one and now the mentor of a team on another – what ties Rohit to his dancing shoes? “Certainly more than just strings!” he quips. “I love the format of dance-based reality shows and I believe they are the best way of entertaining the audience.”

Tell him that he has been missing from the big screen after Shootout At Lokhandwala and he reveals, “I am currently working on three films – Don Muthuswamy with Mithun Chakraborty, Mitaal vs Mittal with Rituparna Sengupta and Alibaug by Sanjay Gupta. I believe in doing quality stuff rather than signing 15 films at one go and then failing to give my best to any of them. Apart from that, I am also about to finalise another script after Dus Kahaniyaan .”

How is it working with big stars and big banners? “The really big stars have no airs about them. It’s only the new boys who taste success overnight and show loads of attitude. All my co-stars and directors have been fantastic to work with and I am gaining a foothold in the industry. Mine has not been a meteoric rise, and I don’t have any godfather in the industry. I have slogged to be where I am and so I know the value of being grounded. I know the worth of what I have gained,” he says.

It seems that Rohit’s plate is too full for him to act in TV shows. He explains, “My love story with the small screen is still going strong. I am producing a couple of shows, including Rock n Roll Family, Cinemascope and Inside Bollywood . Mansi is actively involved with all the production work.”

It is also rumoured that Rohit’s wife Manasi has become a fixture on the sets of Yeh Hai Jalwa . “If she is a constant in my life, what’s wrong with being a constant on the sets of my show?” he asks.

Is she keeping an eye on her handsome husband? “Handsome I am, but I certainly don’t have a roving eye. My funda is clear – see but do not touch. She comes to spend time with me and I like her to be around,” he lays the issue to rest.