Dev Patel proud of quirks

Dev Patel is proud of his big ears.

The 'Last Airbender' used to get bullied at school for his appearance, but never got upset by any of the taunts and was able to laugh at himself.

He said: "I've always been a happy bunny. My life has always been uncomplicated. Growing up, religion and race were never issues for me. I'd regularly attend Hindu temple, but the faith was never forced on me.

"At school I was bullied by the older kids, but I never experienced any racism. I was teased for having big ears, but I didn't mind that. I saw it as a badge of honour. I used to run round the playground pretending that my ears were the FA Cup handles. I never had a problem making myself popular."

However, the 20-year-old actor admits he does get embarrassed, and was left particularly red-faced when he sat down with his family to watch 'Skins', the British TV drama in which he shot to fame playing Anwar .

He explained to Live magazine: "I remember sitting down with my whole family the first Friday night it was on the TV. It was the single most embarrassing experience of my life.

'In one of the earliest scenes I was running around completely naked. Looking at my sister watching me on screen was completely traumatic."