By Subhash K Jha
What was it like shooting with Akshaye Khanna and Saif Ali Khan?
It was a dream . The relationship among the three of us was perfect. I can’t imagine doing this film with any other costars. The warmth that we shared is likely to come across on screen. I think Farhan Akhtar had done a wonderful job. For a first film he ‘s amazingly mature and very sure of what he wants , very sure about his takes and what he wants from his actors.
Did you contribute to the scenes in Dil Chahta Hai beyond your capacity as an actor? Or were you too tired after Lagaan?
No no. I wasn’t tired. My contribution to Dil Chahta Hai is as an actor. Whatever little help Farhaan asked for, I gave. That’s all. But I get worried by this kind of a question. The minute I say I am involved with a film, people turn around and say I directed it. So what should I say? Yes, I was completely involved and give people an excuse to take the credit away from Farhan? Or should I say, I wasn’t involved beyond an actor, only to hear people say I was disinterested? It’s a Catch 22 question. So my answer is, yes, I was very involved with Dil Chahta Hai and Lagaan and no, I didn’t direct either.
You seem to have had a ball playing the brattish Akash in Dil Chahta Hai?
Yeah, I did. When Farhan Akhtar narrated the script to me he didn’t tell me which character he wanted me to play. After hearing him out I liked the whole script. But I wondered for which role he had me in mind . Farhan wanted me to play Siddharth, that’s Akshaye Khanna’s role. I had no problem with that role. I just felt I had done that already.
In which film?
Well not exactly Siddharth. Even in Lagaan my character was underplayed. I wasn’t very excited about playing Sid. My instincts didn’t really warm up to that part. I told Farhan that I liked Akash very much. It was a very challenging part. That’s something I had never done before. Farhan thought about it, and agreed to let me play Akash I think the role required me to unlearn whatever I had learnt about acting in the last ten years.
Akash isn’t a very likeable character to begin with. His friend’s girlfriend doesn’t like him?
Er, he’s likeable . True, he’s not very true to his relationships. I’d say he’s a shallow guy. He can be quite callous with people’s feelings. Akash isn’t a deep person. I understood the character the minute I read the screenplay. I had some real-life references to play Akash. I know some really callous and shallow people. In fact you know them too. But I’m certainly not going to name them(laughs). But basically Akash isn’t a bad guy. One experience in romantic love brings out his good side. I loved the transformation my character goes through specially at the end when he has the courage and honesty to call up his friend Siddharth to apologize.
There are scenes, like the one at the opera in Sidney which could have easily fallen apart?
I just did what the script required me to. You see, whatever you do as an actor has to be done with a lot of belief and conviction. When you play a character sincerely the audience is bound to connect with your effort. When the audiences see a sincere performance in the actor’s eyes they believe in the character’s truth.
Would you agree that Dil Chahta Hai is the best thing you’ve done so far?
I can’t say that. It’s very difficult to arrive at any such conclusion. When I did Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar everyone said that was mindblowing. Then I did Andaz Apna Apna and I was told that was my best performance to date. Then they said the same about Rangeela , Raja Hindustani and Sarfarosh . I always keep getting these strong reactions.
How do you rate your performance in Dil Chahta Hai, vis a vis Lagaan
I think I’ve managed to do what I set out to do in Dil Chahta Hai . But it’s very difficult to compare the two performances since they are diametrically opposite.
You aren’t very happy with your performance in Lagaan?
No no, I’m very happy. I wasn’t happy with the time I got to prepare for Lagaan. I’ve never said I was happy or unhappy about my performance in Lagaan. All I said was, I didn’t get enough time to prepare for my part. In contrast I got two months to prepare for Dil Chahta Hai . I changed my look according to the way Farhan wanted me to look. Credit must go to him for that. I had no idea about how my character would look.
Was Akash’s look dictated by his age?
That’s how youngsters those days dressed behaved and look. Though I was not 18, I was not alienated from the mind processes of that generation. In any case my character wasn’t that young. Akash is in the mid-20s. Akash is just out of college. So he’s about ten years younger than my actual age. Psychologically I had no problem with my character. I was 34 when I read the script of Dil Chahta Hai. I asked Farhan if I could pass off as a 24-year old. He was sure I could. The characters and the dialogues were so well written, they brought out the flavour and feel of the whole script. As an actor I had no ambiguous pockets in the screenplay. That was a big help.
An accusation against Dil Chahta Hai is that it’s a very urban film?
How can you call that an accusation? It’s the film’s characteristic. Farhan made a film that’s close to his sensibility. For better or for worse his sensibility is urban modern and ‘today’. I’m sure there are sections of the audience who don’t appreciate all the finer points of the film or identify with the characters. But that doesn’t mean Farhan intends to ignore any section of the audience. Farhan has done what came naturally to him. Very few films have a totally universal resonance. It’s very difficult to make films that appeal to all sections.
So what’s the solution?
I feel the times are changing. As an actor I’ve been trying to do different but universally acceptable films. Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak , Dil Hai Ki Manta Nahin , Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar and Andaz Apna Apna , Sarfarosh, Lagaan and Dil Chahta Hai were all different for their times. I’ve always been excited by fresh and pathbreaking material. I’m happy that all these films have worked.
You’re the only actor to have served up two outstanding films Lagaan and Dil Chahta Hai in two months. How are you going to fulfil audiences’ expectations?
(laughs) But what am I supposed to do? I’m doing films that I believe in and enjoy doing. And I’m thrilled people love them. When I stop doing good work their appreciation will obviously stop there.
So what’s your secret formula?
No formula. I just follow my instincts. I feel very vindicated, happy and proud that the audience across the country share my enthusiasm for a different kind of entertainment. That is very encouraging. With every film I’ve gathered the strength to try something different in my next film. I think I’m going about it the right way.
In both Lagaan and Dil Chahta Hai you had play guys quite removed from your sensibilities?
Isn’t that always the case? I played a tapori in Rangeela. I’ve never been one in my life. Or the IPS officer in Sarfarosh…But yes, in both Lagaan and Dil Chahta Hai I played guys who were ten years younger. I’m 35. They were 25. That wasn’t a problem. Actors are constantly going ten years behind or beyond their age. A 75-year old actor can’t be 25 on screen. But a 35-year old actor can easily look 25. The point is, I should look convincing in what I do.
