"I realised I had to break all that when I started shooting. I didn't want to feel awkward when I had to smoke on screen or kiss the girl. It took me a long time to sort myself out. He gave me four months. And that's what I took. I started talking to him like I would talk to my friends. He took it well, he responded positively so things were cool by the time the first shot was taken."

For someone who wanted to fly like Superman when he was a kid, must say Hrithik has come a long way. Like Amod Mehra , trade analyst and family friend puts it, "Ever since he was a kid, Hrithik always had this urge to master everything. Like he assisted his father because he wanted to learn the business of movie making. He's always wanted to be a Jack, no, make that master, of all trades.

"When he was younger, he used to tinker a lot with cars. He was very curious about cars. Then he switched over to medicine. I remember he had decided he wanted to be an actor when he was in school. He started assisting his father when he was in college.

He still talks about one particular incident that made a major difference to his life. This was when he was assisting his dad. He walked into the set to find his father mopping up the floor. He was obviously very shocked that a big producer like his dad was doing such a menial task.

"When he questioned his dad about it, his father told him, "It's my set. If I don't bother about it, who will?" From that day onwards, even Hrithik has adopted the same attitude. He's so helpful and humble. He has no qualms about lifting trolleys or cleaning floors if need be. He's a very well-brought-up, well-behaved boy. It's no wonder he's such a big sensation today."