“I’ve tasted it all,” he says, “Stardom, superstardom and mega-stardom. I held a share in each of these earlier; now I’m just enjoying the dividends.” Gems like these keep flowing as the actor talks of his foray into national television and what he thinks of dancers these days. Mithunda, as he’s popularly known, has taken up the mantle of mahaguru on Zee TV’s latest reality show Dance India Dance. “I never knew television is such hard work,” he grimaces, “I salute all those who’ve made it a career.” This is not the actor’s first stint in television; he’s also the judge on a Bengali dance reality show called Dance Bangla Dance; though he insists that the two shows could not be more different, despite similar names. “The only thing in common is me,” he declares.

Chakraborty says that he can’t talk about the show without revealing too much, but it’s obvious from his excitement that all he wants to do is talk about it. He waxes eloquent on the subject but, he makes sure, without going into details. “In my view, it isn’t a reality show at all,” he says, “You may say whatever you like, but that’s my opinion. I would say that this is the search for a dancing star, not just a dancer.”

He’s equally vague about his role on the show. “I’m the mahaguru,” he says, “The three judges — Remo D’souza, Geeta Kapoor and Terence Lewis — will act as mentors to the final 18 contestants. They’ll have six contestants each under their wing and will choreograph their moves. The final decision will rest with me and, of course, the viewers.” But when it’s pointed out that viewer voting is often erratic with the result that the less deserving contestant wins, Chakraborty is quick to reprimand, “Then all the responsible people should vote. Instead, we just sit at home and watch.”

With all the bad press reality shows have recently been getting, Chakraborty feels obliged to insist the show is not scripted, mysteriously enough, even when asked if he’ll be performing any of the moves that made him famous. But he’s less reticent when asked about his future moves in Bollywood. “I’m doing a lot of character roles now because one has to move with the times. It’s like dance — things keep changing. You can’t keep doing the same stuff in dance, like disco or hip hop. Similarly, movies have also evolved.”

And what does he think about the fact that dance is no longer important in movies. “It’s not just the dancing and singing — even the script is no longer important,” he says, sounding a trifle disgruntled, “These days it’s just the packaging which matters.”