FILM INTERVIEW: IMRAN KHAN

 

Below are the perspectives he shared:

 

Neha Sarin-Malhotra: What was the special thing about the character of Kush Agnihotri that got you excited?

 

Imran Khan: I have always been somehow drawn to characters who are close to life. I like to play characters that I can relate to, that I feel other people can relate to, that anyone can look at and say, 'Yeah, that’s me.’ I like my characters to be relatable, and that’s what I found in this situation, because the situation these characters are in is ridiculous…it’s crazy. 

 

NSM: Tell us who Kush Agnihotri is.

 

IK: Kush Agnihotri is a very simple, standard, average kind of a guy. He is a boy from a small town -- he is from Dehradun. He has grown up there, and since then, he’s moved to Bombay and is working in films. Now he’s become an AD in films, which is actually just a backdrop … the majority of the story takes place in North India – in Dehradun, in Delhi, in Agra -- and it’s how this normal guy gets stuck in a situation that he doesn’t entirely know how to deal with, and he finally has to resort to his wit and intelligence. 

 

NSM: You had a serious session of script reading with your other cast members -- the two guys who play your friends in the film. How did that go?

 

IK: I feel that a major part of the chemistry on-screen depends on off-screen chemistry. Unfortunately, I have been in situations in life where I have had to turn up sometimes, and you have to shoot with people who you have not met before, and you are supposed to be friends, or this one is supposed to be your girlfriend or your mother, and the first day you meet is the day that you are shooting, and that always, I feel, never comes out as well as it could. I mean, sure, you might both be very good actors, you might work very hard, and you might get something good, but it’s not great. I feel that it’s not as good as it could be. Here, I was fortunate that all of us got to sit together, and we got to do rehearsals, we got to do readings, and we got to play off each other and figure out at least a little bit of each other’s style, and we managed to get a little bit of rhythm going between all of us -- all of us figured out what each other’s zone is.

 

NSM: This is the first time you will be seen with Katrina. There have been occasions before when you were supposed to do films together, but things didn’t work out...

 

IK: Katrina and I have almost worked together a couple of times in the past. At one point, I think, both of us had even come on board together for a film, and unfortunately there were various problems and the film never took off.  So it was always these near-misses, and I always really looked forward to working with her. I thought there was something very interesting…very exciting about her as an actor, and she was someone that I wanted to work with, but somehow that “correct” thing never came up. So I was surprised by how quickly and easily this fell into place. Once I got to know her, I realized she is actually a very, very chilled out person. She is very non-actor like; she is very non-starry -- she doesn’t have that vibe around her. She is just someone who is reserved and takes a little bit of time to open up and some time to warm up to people, but once that happens, she is great.

 

NSM: Often there were scenes where you had to be out there in public places -- you were on the roads riding a scooter. How was that?

 

IK: Riding the scooter in this film was easily one of the worst experiences of my life. Firstly, I do not know how to ride a scooter at all. This didn’t seem to be a problem to anyone; for whatever reason, it was not felt that I need to train or something. They were like, ‘Don’t worry…you’ll be fine…you’ll learn.’ So I arrived on set (and) it was explained to me that ‘this is one brake here…this is the clutch…you have to turn this…ye woh hai…’ I feel a major part of the movie was based on the scooter, for every second day I used to go on the set and they would be like, ‘Sir aapka scooter…’ Never again. From now on, I shall do films where I have Ferraris!

 

NSM: Let’s briefly talk about "Isq Risk."

 

IK: "Isq Risk," funnily enough, was my first day of shooting for the film. The first shot I did for the film was for “Isq Risk,” and it’s a brilliant song. Firstly, just the idea of it -- what the song is talking about -- it comes at the moment in the film where my character, Kush, has realized that he is in love with Dimple, and mostly the film is a comedy. It’s a funny film all the way through; there’s just a short moment in the film where it gets a little emotional. I am a sucker for songs. I love songs that have emotions in them, that make you feel something.

 

'Mere Ki Dulhan' is now playing.