By SHEELA NARAYANAN

JOHN Abraham wants to be a complete person. But he's man enough to admit that he's only three-quarters of the way to achieving that.

"For me, there is a silent determination to be accepted by everyone in the audience as a complete person and also a complete actor. I believe with the kind of roles and films that I have done, I have probably reached 70 to 80 per cent of what I had to. But the rest of the crucial 30 per cent is very important," the model-turned-actor told the media recently.

John's being modest. The motorcycle fanatic and football fan has reached a point in his career where he is not only making waves at the box office, he's popular with the girls, despite his six-year relationship with the sexy Bipasha Basu and, thanks to his role in Dostana has also become a gay icon.

His latest films, Dostana and New York, have created plenty of buzz - okay, so he bared his bottom in both films - and there is no doubt that John, is giving the more established stars some serious competition for the superstar, or in some cases superstud, pedestal. Even the fracas over a complaint about his alleged nude pictures in an Indian daily only added to his popularity.

John Abraham (R) and his actress girlfriend Bipasha Basu (L).

The Mumbai-born John made his presence felt in the film industry in 2003 with Jism - that role also won him the off-screen affections of his co-star Bipasha. And, despite some not-so-stellar movie choices after that, he bounced back the following year with Dhoom. His role as a bandit in the movie took him back into the spotlight and got him work with reputed directors like Karan Johar and Deepa Mehta.

When he made his appearance at the 2005 International Indian Film Academy awards in Amsterdam, fans screamed at the same decibel level they reserved for Shah Rukh Khan.

That prompted John to say on his website: "I didn't fancy myself as an actor until I was plumb in the middle of it all."

He's so keen to prove himself that, having garnered critical acclaim for his comedy performance in Dostana, he hopes his serious role as an NRI accused of terrorism in New York will take him closer to being taken seriously as an actor by his audience... and not just a guy with a great body.

Considering that New York, which is currently screening in Singapore, raked in Rs35 crores worldwide in the first three days of its release, he doesn't need to worry. Everything about John Abraham is scorching right now - his career, his girlfriend and his popularity.

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