On Thursday evening, the media and 200 lucky winners of a Pepsi Diet contest were awed by John Abraham's [Images] charisma and witty answers. The actor attended an open question and answer forum, where winners could ask him just about anything! 

He also surprised audiences by speaking in Gujarati and Malyalam (his father is Malyalee; his mother, Parsi). "Maari Gujarati bau saari che (my Gujarati is good)," he said, "but I speak koracha koracha (little) Malyalam. I can say sentences like Ishtamanu (I love), but not more."

When a plump man asked John how he could look as handsome as the star, John replied, "Looks are subjective. I think you are a handsome man." On a lighter note, he added, "But you have to exercise. I exercise two-three times a week."

One of the winners wanted to know the secret to John's silky hair. "I just comb it once in a day," he replied. "I don't have a hairstyle. I keep my hair as it is. There is no need to maintain it."

The actor interacted with fans for two hours, chatting and posing for pictures. When asked to list his favourite actors, he picked "Aamir Khan [Images], Shah Rukh Khan [Images] and Amitabh Bachchan [Images]. Also, KK Menon and Naseeruddin Shah [Images]." Among his favourite actresses, John named Rani Mukerji [Images] and, of course, girlfriend Bipasha Basu [Images]. "Heroines are usually not ready to do films with heroes who are not famous, but Bipasha was the only one who agreed to do a film with me (Jism [Images]) when I was not an established hero," he said. Incidentally, Jism remains his favourite film till date.

When a fan asked what he would do if Bipasha left John and came to him, the star pointed to his T-shirt and said, "I will make you wear this." The T-shirt bore the words, 'I am a lookalike of John Abraham'.

When asked how fame had changed him, he answered, "I ask myself this all the time. I have been brought up with middle class values. My best friends today are those I went to school with. I am the same John Abraham. If I lose my material belongings tomorrow, I won't mind because I have always lived a simple life. I rarely wear expensive clothes. I dress up simply so I don't fear losing fame."

About his shift from positive to negative roles, he said, "I specialise in being the bad guy! Zinda [Images] and Dhoom (in which he plays the bad guy) were special to me. I love playing these roles. I love dark films. Audiences are more receptive to these roles. I cannot do the usual commercial stuff all the time. I cannot dance all the time. I have to offer different things to my fans constantly."

The actor has Ravi Chopra's Baabul and Kabir Khan's Kabul Express [Images] in his kitty. "I want to experiment and, at the same time, do films where I will be the only hero," he said.

John also commented on the recent controversy of Union Health Minister Ramadoss appealing to Bollywood personalities to stop endorsing soft drinks, as these were bad for health, especially for children. He played down the controversy by stating that he had already signed a deal with Pepsi before Ramadoss' statement was released. "I did some research and found out that Diet Pepsi is not harmful to health," he explianed. "It is less than one calorie. The Health Minister may have his concerns, but I am sure one can sort out the matter."

Text: Syed Firdaus Ashraf