Acting is his first love and will always remain so but in the time of crisis, doctor-turned-actor Ashish Gokhale is on 24×7 duty at a private hospital treating the coronavirus patients.
Gokhale was last seen on Sony TV’s Tara From Satara in which he played Varun Mane, uncle to Roshni Walia’s Tara.
He has also acted in films such as Akshay Kumar’s Gabbar is Back and a Marathi film titled Mogra Phulaalaa.
Before he made his acting debut in 2015 with Zee TV’s Kumkum Bhagya, he was practising medicine in Maharashtra’s Konkan region.
Five years ago, Gokhale shifted base to Mumbai where he started acting in both films and on TV, while straddling a job at a private hospital in suburban Juhu. “Before lockdown I would go for shoots during day time and in the night I come to a multi-speciality hospital. I last shot for a TV show on March 14. I miss being on sets, the moment between ‘roll camera and action’ was magical.
“But I am in the role of Dr Ashish now. I don’t have to take effort to be in this role. I have learnt it for five-and-half years and done practice too. Because of the coronavirus, I am into this 24×7. I want to save people. I want to help in curing this virus,” Gokhale, 31, told PTI in an interview.
The general physician-actor said the situation may be worrisome, but the best way to save oneself is to stay at home.
Gokhale said from March 24, the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the nationwide lockdown he has been working on round-the-clock shifts.
He believes today there is new found love and respect for the medical staff as they are risking their lives to save the common man. But this might not last long, he added.
“Doctors are real heroes. They are the front workers today, they are risking their lives. ” he added. (IANS)
