During his recent promotional trip to Ahmedabad, Avinash Mukherjee aka Jagya of Balika Vadhu fame came as a surprise package. The transformation from a tweenibopper to an adolescent kid was obvious as a bit shy Avinash posed for the camera along with the crew of his show Sanskaar — Dharohar Apnon Ki. The 15-year-old young gun is back on TV to play a 24-year old in his current telly outing. Caught in a relaxed mood, Avinash spoke about his love for acting and how he balances his passion with his studies.

Confident about handling the pressure of exams and shooting schedules simultaneously, Avinash says, "I am in class X, but I think I can handle my work as I have completed almost 70 per cent of my syllabus already, which is enough to pass." Avinash, who plays a character nine years older than his real age, is confident to pull it off. He says, "Once we have our make up and costume done, it is all about getting into the skin of the character. Age doesn't really matter. Even my ex costar of Balika Vadhu — Avika Gor — is doing roles of a grown-up bahu." The actor feels that his long break after Balika Vadhu will help him break the image that the TV audience have of him as Jagya. "I think I have taken a long break so that people will relate me to my character Ankit in this show. I wouldn't say my character is negative; it has shades of grey!"

Talking about his passion for acting, Avinash says, "Since childhood I only wanted to be world famous. I had thought I would be an astronaut. As I grew up, these fairytale dreams ended. But when my father shifted to Mumbai and I moved after him, he was already in this industry for four years. That is when I realized that this is the best field for exposure and being famous." About his inspirations, he adds, "Whenever I see Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan or Amitabh Bachchan, I feel a fire burning inside me. I also want to reach that position one day and become a big star in movies. Ek aag si jalne lagti hai." Ask him about his B-Town plans and he says, "I will take a break after my TV show, like I did after Balika Vadhu, so that people can get over the image I had last and then do a movie. Bollywood is definitely where I want to be."

Apart from acting, Avinash states body-building and gymming as his next big passion. "Sylvester Stallone is my idol. I love working out," he says. The actor, who shot extensively in Gujarat for his current show, which is about a Gujarati family, says, "I simply loved Adalaj Ni Vav. It is a beautiful place. Most people in the show are Gujarati so they mostly speak in that language and I don't understand a word. I have to tell them to speak in Hindi. But it's a lot of fun."