Unlike the general perception, the Hindi film industry is not exactly a rose garden. Surviving here is a harsh game; if your stars are strong and your moves right, you might come out a winner… Else, you will be pulled down so bad you might want to shun it forever. Probably that’s the reason why the youngest heir to Yashraj felt the need to take a step back to rethink. For nearly three years post the debacle of NEAL ‘N’ NIKKI, Uday Chopra was not heard of or seen not just in films but even at social events. One thought he had probably bid adieu to the world of lights-camera-action forever. But lately he surprised everyone with the announcement of his next film, PYAAR IMPOSSIBLE. Finally, he was out of his self-created shell, back with confidence and some more dreams. Now that he was back in circulation and, more importantly, talking; I decide to catch up with Uday at the mammoth Yashraj empire, to figure out what his disappearance act was all about. He smiles as he looks up from his cup of black coffee and says, “Actually I was just taking a break, a break from this industry, a break from acting…I needed to sit down and think about my career. I wasn’t happy with the kind of work I was constantly being offered. Everything coming my way was on similar lines of what I’d done in DHOOM. It’s not that I dislike comedies but I’m not much of a slapstick guy. So I was just deciding what to do with my life and my career.” Yet, in those three years, we didn’t even see a glimpse of him in the newspapers… “You know, I was going through a really low phase in my life…” he takes a pause, probably deciding if he should pour his heart out or not and continues, “At that time, I didn’t want to face the world. I had gone into a shell. I was depressed, burdened by insecurities and didn’t feel like speaking to anyone. I was questioning myself, doubting my potential…I had lost confidence, so it was a pretty bad phase of my life. It was crazy. I didn’t meet anyone, spent time all alone, trying to put the pieces of my life in order. I was soul-searching and looking for answers.” A tough time for sure, especially since post NEAL ‘N’ NIKKI, Uday was also dating his co-star Tanisha. The love affair ended pretty soon…was that the reason why he slipped into depression? “No, not at all,” he refutes. “It was mainly my career which had me disturbed; it had nothing to do with my break-up with Tanisha. I think the debacle of NEAL ‘N’ NIKKI put me into a shell. That was the trigger point after which I went into this depression-like stage.”