IT’S a long-time desire realised for Riteish Deshmukh. It’s taken the actor seven years since his debut film, Tujhe Meri Kasam, to feature in a love story, Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai! (JKSAH). “I’m just getting back to where I started. It’s just that I have much more confidence now. JKSAH has a great script; there is romance and humour, but no negative element,” says Riteish, who loves feelgood romantic movies like Dil To
Pagal Hai.

He’s worked with director Milap Zaveri on this film and says it’s always pleasant to work with a friend, for the two go way back. “Milap is a romantic at heart and even brought out the romantic in me,” says Riteish.

Did the actor recommend Sri Lankan beauty queen Jacqueline Fernandez for JKSAH? “No. It was Milap and Sujoy Ghosh’s decision to cast her and she’s under contract with Sujoy,” he clarifies.

The film is all about a dream girl who comes from Venus to woo an earthling played by Riteish, but the actor doesn’t believe in a dream girl in real life. “Once you meet a person, love happens over a period of time. There’s a lot more to it than the first sight; you should get to know and understand the other person to fall in love with her,” he shares. After his performance in Rann, Riteish is considered a serious actor. “I wasn’t sure if people would take me seriously, after having watched me in so many comedies. But audiences loved me,” he says. Is he choosy about his roles after Rann? “Not really.

In fact, I started work on House Full and Dhamaal before Rann. But Rann released before them. It was a different experience working with Ramu (Gopal Varma),” adds Riteish. Are there more sex comedies on the way? “When I did Masti, people appreciated me. Then, Heyy Babyy happened. But the other day, some kids came up to me and said, ‘We aren’t allowed to watch your films.’ That’s when I decided not to do films that can’t be viewed by an entire family,” explains Riteish.