'3 Idiots' fame Omi Vaidya feels lack of challenging roles keeping him away from Bollywood

Image courtesy- movie still

New Delhi: Omi Vaidya's became an overnight sensation after playing nerdy 'Chatur Ramalingam' in 2009 film '3 Idiots' but did not do as many films in India and the actor cites lack of challenging roles as the reason for his absence from Bollywood.

Post '3 idiots', Omi starred in just four films - 'Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji', 'Desi Boyz', 'Players' and 'Jodi Breakers', which released in 2012.

The actor 34-year-old actor says though he has enjoyed his stint with Hindi films especially in terms of money, he was not getting roles which excited him enough.

"I am grateful for being remembered for my role in '3 Idiots' because most people work all their lives to get that kind of fame. I got into this profession because I wanted to do something different. '3 Idiots' was very challenging as I did not know the language and I did not grow up in India," Omi told PTI over phone from Washington DC.

The actor says travelling to exotic locales for his films shoots and getting to hang out with big Bollywood stars was a great experience but was not enough to convince him to continue doing big-budget movies in India.

"After '3 Idiots', I did take up other projects which were enjoyable, I was paid very well and was appreciated by people. But the challenge of life is about learning constantly. Some people are just happy with making good money but I want to continue growing and for that you have to do different things. I strive on doing something different."

Omi is currently busy being a hands-on father to his son, who was born last year. Besides fatherhood, he is also starring in a new Indian-American show 'Brown Nation', which is an entertaining, slice of life series focused on life a struggling small IT business owner in New York.