Rangmunch: What are you grateful for in life ?
Shaleen: I am extremely grateful for the family that god has gifted me and the one that I have chosen…my friends. That’s the greatest gift that one can have.
Rangmunch: One thing that is missing in your life at the moment?
Shaleen: SLEEP !
Rangmunch: What do you do when you have a day off?
Shaleen: I try to sleep but then there are friends who wake me up at odd hours. That’s because its their free time but…I would just sleep. If I am not shooting for a long time then I am not there at my house. Then I like to chilling with friends, go for outdoor excursions, adventure trips, bike rides and all that.
Rangmunch: What kind of a friend are you?
Shaleen: I am a 24 hour atm friend. I can give money to my friends at anytime if I have it. I am a friend whom you can call at any given time in the world and I will be there if I can be there. It’s not that if you ask me to come to London in half an hour I will be there. So logically wherever it’s feasible I will always be there to support them because they do the same for me.
Rangmunch: What’s your greatest asset?
Shaleen: My greatest asset is my hard work.
Rangmunch: Who had the greatest impact on you?
Shaleen: My grandfather. He always wanted one of his grandsons to be associated with the entertainment Industry. He was closely associated with the industry at the time when Zanjeer and Deewar were made. No one else took that initiative. I took that up and succeeded in it. He has always motivated and backed me up to do it. He was a great man who has ever walked the planet for me. After him it is my Father who had the greatest impact. You know when you don’t get the family support in doing something, you become a rebel. If you fail, you have no one to blame but yourself. But if you have the support of your family that does wonders to your morale. It boosts your confidence. A paralysed person can walk and run because of the confidence and will power that comes from the basic roots. If your roots are strong you tend to do the impossible.
Rangmunch: What is your biggest regret?
Shaleen: The biggest regret is that I couldn’t be there for my grandfather’s funeral. That regret will always be there.
Rangmunch: How adventurous are you?
Shaleen: Extremely adventurous. I am the person who has already scaled the whole of the country on a bike. I have gone to Ladakh on a bike twice. I have done mountaineering courses when I was a kid. I have done excursions, camping. For me it’s very simple, I rather stay in a tent with a bonfire rather than staying in a five star hotel. I rather cook it than just have it.
Rangmunch: How satisfied are you with your life at the moment?
Shaleen: I am always very satisfied. I think you get whatever you want to have. Aap ko kisine force nahi kiya koi decision lene ke liye. Toh I am very satisfied ki ab tak maine jo kiya uska outcome mujhe accha mil raha hai. There are frustrating times jab aap mehnat karte ho aur aapko result nahi milta. But I think with me agar woh result nahi bhil mil raha hai then my family and friends have always kept me in a direction ki aaj nahi toh kal toh mil hi jayega. Toh I am always very satisfied with my life. You will never see me dissatisfied.
Rangmunch: Describe Shaleen in one word.
Shaleen: When I was a kid I used to impress everyone with this line “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”. It’s the longest word in the dictionary which means wonderful.
(As told to Niharika Vidya Sagar and Swati Ghosh)
Edited by: Navyanka Varma
