The delighted man whose wonder diet has made him shed plenty of kilos — to look like the young hero of his upcoming movie. He’s changed his look, with his sister Roopa conjuring up a new wardrobe for him. Gone are the trademark caps as well. “How else will I show off my new hair,” he joked at his own expense. But the tandoor so far was nothing compared to the ‘grill’ he was about to be put through. He was quickly shown a byte of what Sonu Niigaam had remarked when asked about a comparison between the two – “My hair is real,” he’d laughed.

But obviously, Himesh had the last laugh — at his own expense. “Yes, he’s right. Where do I deny it? I’ve had a hair transplant and hair extensions done. But I don’t hide anything na? I speak the truth and try to be as transparent as possible,” he says.

Why the extra ZZZs in the movie title, we couldn’t resist asking. “Oh, that was my numerologist’s advice. Now it adds up to my lucky number, so I’m happy. I’m pretty sure it’ll get a good opening,” he added seriously.

On the comparisons being drawn between the original and the remake, he said: "There can be no comparison between the original film and ours. The original was a classic and no one can go near it. We have tried to do our best by adding a new twist to the story”.

"I think the audience should see the film keeping in mind that they are watching a non-professional actor and dancer. They shouldn't compare it with the original." After Aap Kaa Surroor, Karzzz is his second film.

"I consider Karzzz as my first film because in my debut film Aap Kaa Surroor I played myself. All other actors have performed well, but I can't comment on my performance. The audience will decide and give their verdict," he said.

Himesh said the success of Karzzz was important to his career because its box office performance would affect his other forthcoming films. While Karzzz is releasing Oct 17, Kajra Re is set for a 2009 release.

Besides these, his other releases are Mudh Mudh Na Dekh, Ek Love Issshtory and Hey Gujju. "These five films will be releasing over a period of time, so the success of Karzzz becomes really important for me, otherwise the pressure would again be on Kajra Re, my next release.

About the music of Karzzz, Himesh said he had retained the original songs with a lounge flavour, besides two songs of his own. "I have sung the Ek haseena thi without my nasal tone because it was Kishore Kumar's song," he said. The song was originally created by composer duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal and Himesh said that Pyarelal had heard his version and liked it.

Himesh said that he has sung, acted and composed in the film, but it was the acting part that he found most interesting. "Music and singing is my profession, but I am acting to achieve something. So acting is what I enjoyed the most now.