Wife's Chatur, too!

Omi Vaidya's studious biwi is being awarded a doctorate in public health

Omi Vaidya's studious biwi is being awarded a doctorate in public health

Over the weekend, Omi Vaidya fetched two honours for being the Best Newcomer and Best Comedian at the Screen Awards nite. Chatur Ramalingam of 3 Idiots has been noticed and is looking forward to being a part of Bollywood. But before he greenlights his next film, Omi has to fly back home to the US. His wife Minal Patel is being awarded a doctorate in public health and hubby dearest has to be present.

Omi Vaidya and Minal Patel on their wedding day last August

"I have to be in Los Angeles by January 23 or my wife will kill me!" he guffaws. "She is getting her Ph D... there is no way I can miss the occasion."

Keep the weight
The actor got married last August in the midst of shooting for 3 Idiots. "I had scheduled the marriage thinking that the shoot would be over but then there were still some shots to be canned in Ladakh, Just before that. Raju told me to keep the extra weight I had gained for the film as well as that slightly bald look. So for my wedding I ended up looking like Chatur too."

Omi's folks have been based in the US for two generations. "We are originally from Goa and speak English and Marathi at home. That is why I don't know Hindi too well. Now I have a personal tutor who teaches me Hindi for three hours every day. He is strict and works hard on my pronunciation. If I want to be in Bollywood, I need to improve on my Hindi."

Write connections
Though in Los Angeles, Omi bagged a role in 3 Idiots courtesy the film's screenwriter Abhijat Joshi, who is based in Ohio, USA. "He is part of a group of writers and I knew one its membersu00a0-- Supriya Kelkar. She put me on to Abhijat and told me that there were auditions happening."

Omi has acted in several American TV serials but is best remembered as Sadiq from The Office
"Now everyone calls me Chatur 'Silencer' and Chatur 'the Chamatkar/Balatkar' from the movie," he says.