Sit With Hitlist: Ranbir Kapoor Opens As Rarely Before

Ranbir Kapoor in an exclusive discussion with mid-day talks about "getting married" the director's mind; send hard messages to his father Rishi via his mother, why there will never be a Raj Kapoor biopic, and more …

Actor Ranbir Kapoor visited the mid-day office to "sit down with Hitlist", so to speak, just before Sanju's exit. Which is just as good, since he usually only meets the press to promote his films, a kind of rule, we hope, that he would make exceptions, from time to time. time. For, the last time that mid-day was trying to contact him was late 2016, when we wanted to put it on the cover of a new product we were launching. We asked his best friend, filmmaker Ayan Mukerji, to put a word, we exchanged text messages with Kapoor for a few days; until, it has totally disappeared! It's just then that we start this conversation with:

You obviously do not like being interviewed, is not it?
No. Maybe it's because I'm an introvert. And when I do not have a movie to tell, I feel really naked to be asked [questions about myself] because I find it hard to lie about certain things.

This is true. There should be a serious meme in line with, "says Ranbir honestly. You talked about your parents' marital problems, you had a problem with alcohol, because you were alone at home. In the early years, you talked about being a stoner once, and then your father's lawyer called to warn you that you could go to jail for saying that. Are you more careful now?
No, I do not want to be careful, I prefer to be honest. It's always nice when someone talks to you about the hard work you have done, or the fact that someone recognizes your work. When I started my career, there was a lot of spotlight on my personal life – not on my parents, but on my partner. I was so scared, and that made me cautious. And I do not know how to lie or manipulate a situation. If someone wants to know my life, and that changes something in his life, inspires him, or helps him learn from my mistakes, then of course, I would not mind talking.

We met last year before the release of Jagga Jasoos, and of course, you were gone after. What did you do to react to this movie?
I was disappointed for various reasons. I collaborated with a director like Anurag Basu who had worked for three years. Katrina [Kaif] and I did other projects, but he was just right on that. In our heads, it is usually difficult to accept that our movie was not very good. When the audience rejects it, you think maybe they did not understand it, or that the movie was ahead of its time. But this is not true. A good movie is a good movie. Nothing else matters. It was sad that the film did not work well. But fortunately, as actors, we have other projects that we have already submitted to; we are on a different trip, which helps. Also, I am a detached person by nature, which also applies to the final verdict of a movie.

You had already done Barfi ( 2012) with Basu; Apparently, you had no idea what was going on in this movie, and everyone liked it. You had similar thoughts about Jagga; that it could have gone one way or the other?
I think so. Barfi was made so that we – including Priyanka [Chopra] Ileana [D’Cruz] – had no idea what was going on. We arrived on the plateau, and Dada [Basu] asked us: "Aaj kya mann hai karne ka? Chalo aaj, teenager, pani-puri, khaane jao. "And so, we would improvise on this stage, we had no script, there was a story, there was a heart, and a synopsis of character, and when we finally saw the movie, we were all three like "Wow, that's awesome." But we did not feel that by doing the movie, so we thought, chalo, if we could shoot that, it might work with Jagga as well. two films were made in the same way, just that he spent a lot of time on Jagga because it was a musical story, father-son, my character stammered, was a detective … There had too many things going on, I think there were parts of genius, but overall it did not really roll out.

Ranbir Kapoor: I will not be never single

Your father totally baffled the poor director in the press after the movie Poor guy must have felt terrible, no?
Good Sure, I felt really bad for Dada. And he also spoke of Pritamda [music composer]. I only have empathy for them. But, to be honest, I have never looked my father in the eye. I always look down and talk to him. And just say, "Yes!" So, it was very difficult for me to confront him on these things. But I always pbad a hard message through my mother. What am I doing, I can not control it.

You seemed to be in a happy space before the liberation of Jagga, because you said you were working with Rajkumar Hirani in Sanju
you already have this cushion. It's as if someone had your back. Because even when the ads and posters of Sanju came out, the amount of love we received was due to the fact that Rajkumar Hirani and Sanjay Dutt were the first to follow the fans

And of course yours also
such a response to one of my first films. When I constantly hit failure, it was not under my control either. For me, Bombay Velvet (2015), Jagga Jasoos (2017), Tamasha (2015) entertained the movies. That is why I was part of them. They were my choices. So you have to step back and ask yourself what's wrong. This answer requires patience. In my case, people from the industry said: "karo commercial photo. Banao body." This makes you confused. But you must take everything: Suno sabki. Karo apni. I feel better now.

Mayank Shekhar and Ranbir Kapoor

Correct me if I'm wrong: your father Rishi Kapoor had brought you to Hirani after Lage Raho Munnabhai (2006) and asked him to work with you. You have also been considered for 3 Idiots (2009), and there were also discussions on PK (2014), in which you made an appearance. Clearly, Aamir Khan stole these parts, right?
Not at all Let 's just say that this way, I did not deserve to be in these movies, given the time and place where I was in my life. Father Raho Munnabhai, my father, saw Raju's mother falling on her feet and saying, "Your son is a genius and I hope he will work with my son at some point." Because my father is like that. When he likes something, he just makes it too much!

You spent a whole year in Sanju, even if you did not go through all that, just hanging out in Raju's office, watching the process; in the same way that you spent 45 days in the studio of A R Rahman during Rockstar (2011). Is this your method?
Yes, that's the case. Before starting a movie, one of the things I try to do is to completely marry the director 's mind. As an actor, I'm only channeling what he's writing. The other thing is to understand the material. A role like Sanju does not often come into the life of an actor. So, I understood that it is the film I need to work. Plus, it's very rare for an actor to feel so inspired by a movie. Post-Rockstar, Sanju was this movie for me.

C & # 39 is also a character that you have seen all your life. He was your neighbor at Pali Hill. Forget the irony of it all, just like the story of a 70-year-old tabloid: Nargis and Raj Kapoor were the most important couple in the nation's screen, even partners creative. And then, generations later, Raj Kapoor's grandson plays Nargis' son on the screen. It's a little crazy, right?
That's the case. But Mr. Sanju always teased me when I was working in his gym during Barfi, "Yeh kya kar raha hai movie, Barfi, Iske baad kya karega, Laddoo, Phir, peda, bana body, be a man, Hero ban." a lot of affection for me. He always said, "If a film is made on me, then I would like you to do it!"

He offered the role …
He did it. It was a few years before Raju sir thought about it. When the offer came, I was not really excited. I was like, "I can not do it.My personality is so different.It's bigger than life, macho, alpha-male.And how can you make a biopic about an actor, who is always if relevant and who works? How will I convince people? "But once I read the script, my perception changed completely.

Wasn't ( deceased) Was Yash Chopra supposed to make a biopic about the life of Raj Kapoor and Nargis Dutt?
Yes, there have been some discussions. But, I guess, when you do the biopic of an actor, he has to open some clbadified files, and reveal the human side, the flaws and the mistakes. You can not only highlight the good side of a person. I do not think my family would allow such a biopic on my grandfather. But, yes, Yashji has shown interest in doing so.

In the same way that Kishore Kumar's family did not allow you to biopic on him?
Yes. In fact, many people called us during the Sanju manufacturing to find out if there was a mention of them in the movie! Raju sir had to clean these accounts most of the time. You can not mention anyone, and just stop your movie! We had to fictionalize some things, or change some names.

Then there to your body language in Sanju, who rides a thin line between performance and mimicry, that so many people like to make superstars. In fact, it may well be a definition of old-world super-stardom – when the public begins to imitate your walk, your way of speaking, your voice, to have fun. Did you find someone who mimics you well?
[Mimicry artiste] Sanket [Bhosale, who does a drunk Sanjay Dutt really well, and who I had met while prepping for the part] did me as well, and that's pretty good. But as the years have pbaded in Indian cinema, a lot of stylized acting game has diminished. It has become more natural and spontaneous. It is difficult to imitate spontaneity, and this applies to all actors of my generation. Everyone seems quite relatable in that sense. But I think that the way someone talks or dances, you can imitate. I guess Sanket did a good job with me

What is the first mannerism you notice when watching someone imitate you?
When someone imitates you, it means that you are successful and that you are doing something right. But the first reaction looks at him: it does not look like me. The second reaction is always: Wow. It's pretty cool that someone talks to me. I've tried to imitate Amitabh Bachchan from Agneepath (1990), Hrithik Roshan in Koi Mil Gaya (2003), Shah Rukh Khan in Dilwale Dulhaniya The Jayenge (1995), Salman Khan in Hum Aapke Hai Koun (1994), Aamir Khan in Rangeela (1995) …. I have never thought that someone would mimic.

And were you you gifted for that?
No, I'm afraid. I do not have the talent to modulate my voice, or study each mannerism, and swing it. In Tamasha, I had to make Dev Anand's mimicry. For that, I took clbades. But that always seems caricatural.

The other thing about celebrity, is when one is opposed to the other. The Khans, for example, have been exclusive "rivals" for almost 30 years now; feed each other, as there was no chance that anyone else could enter this area. In your generation, the big story is Ranbir Kapoor vs. Ranveer Singh;
It will be pompous to say that it is the thing.

Will it be pompous to compare yourself with Ranveer Singh?
To everyone. But yes, I have a big opponent if I can say it [myself]. When I see his films [Ranveer’s] I'm inspired. It is quite magical on the screen. And I think I will help it do better. And it will help me do better. There are times when his films really sound cash registers. I would like to beat that. And it's not just us two. There is Varun [Dhawan] Tiger [Shroff] Sushant [Singh Rajput]. When I started, there were only two or three of them. Now there are 15. But I'm really excited about this media contest.

Why media competition? It's a real numbers business, is not it?
I think it's exaggerated by the media. I'm not sitting at home thinking, "Achcha, Ranveer does not aisa kiya, toh mujhe bhi karna padega!" But this competition created by the media will be exciting.

So you both followed a cliché of show business. For example, everyone refused Zanjeer (1973), and Bachchan was born. Everyone, or at least Aamir, refused Darr (1993), who pretty much did SRK. And you refused Band Baaja Baaraat (2010), then Ranveer Singh!
I started being very demanding about the movies I was doing. And my father never understood this side of an actor, where he does one movie at a time. It comes from a school of thought where you work all the time: three-four outings a year. And then he said, "You have to understand that for every movie you say no, you create another actor, that will get better than you." But that's the fate. I can not do all the movies. And, I have no regrets about the fact that I have not made a particular film, and so, another actor has come!

Speaking of new talent, one of the movies you chose is with Luv Ranjan, whom you called just after watching his low-budget debut, Pyaar Ka Punchnama (2011). Do you do it very often?
It's the only time. Of course, when I love a movie, I always congratulate him. It is important for the fraternity to celebrate the cinematic successes of others, whether it is a performance or the work of the director. But with Luv, I saw Pyaar Ka Punchnama on a flight to London. As soon as I landed, I sent him a message: "Hey, I really enjoyed your movie. That's Ranbir, and I'd like to collaborate with you on a movie. "We left him there Over the years, we talked about different topics.In pbading, he also told the subject of Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety

Is there any "
It was not that he directly offered it to me, but we were just talking about movies." And, finally, he narrated the one that I was talking about. Absolutely loved – a boundless entertainer, ba ** sy, so to speak.This is not the kind of film that Luv did.

And Shamshera is the next, which looks like a macho movie / dacoit, the kind of image that propelled the major stars of Bollywood to the front-benches: Bachchan, Salman or Sanjay Dutt, if you can, did you consciously choose not to be that macho hero? [19659006TobehonestIcannotbethatmachoheroIdonothavethatpersonalitySalmanKhanAjayDevgnorAkshayKumarbringmacho-nitytoanypartytheyweredoingJaggaJasootheywouldmakeJaggaJasoosgoforamachoIlovethestory[of Shamshera] that takes place in the 1800s, about a daku tribe, fighting for their rights, and that could add to my on-screen machination , given the intensity. There is an ambience of aspiration. Sanjay Dutt plays the antagonist. I'm excited about the game. It's very new

It will be surreal again: Ranbir Kapoor with Sanjay Dutt?
I told the director that when he [Dutt] would not come on the set, I could also do his part. Prosthetic done, do all the blows on the shoulder. But I am very happy with the two films that I am about to explore.

You talked about how tired you were to be this same movie after the movie …
Yes, the movies of the pre-age. I'm done with the Harry Potter phase of my life. It is time to move on to the next step.

But you also talked about how, growing up in a protected environment, but by playing characters so different from each other, you always try to explore something deeper. That you almost force a conflict in your life, which helps you to expand your emotional bank. It's like your Rockstar character, right?
No. There is a dialogue in Tamasha where my father says, "Jinki, life is in conflict, nahi hota, and they wish that on themselves, ek din iti buri tarah woh conflict aayega, that you will wish that you do not Have never wished. likes to play games that challenge me emotionally, where you can really go. Roles that make you feel empty from the inside, because it makes you feel alive. It is annoying to continue playing every day, say a little dialogue, a romance of an actress, sing a song. It's fun too. It's part of the deal, and you have to do it. But, I always leaned towards the tragic and intense side. If you consider Rockstar and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani: Rockstar was a 100 times harder part, Yeh Jawaani was easy – come on set, with positive energy, have fun with a large cast. It was a party. I have a lot of respect for Rockstar, within the industry and the media. But the love I get for Yeh Jawaani is something I will never have for Rockstar. Today, if you have seen [before this interview] …

Yes, this little fan-girl was crying uncontrollably when she met you.
She had seen Yeh Jawaani 250 times. These are the movies that people like to watch. They like to watch artists – movies that do not take themselves too seriously. We do not save people's lives. We are artists, and that is what we should do.

I guess in a role like Yeh Jawaani, you have to channel your current personality, in the same way that Shah Rukh and Salman
] Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan are very accommodating with who they are. It's like wearing a T-shirt. You do not dress, or play any character. People love them for who they are first. It's hard to do for me. It's easier for me to have crutches of a character, such as in Barfi, Wake Up Sid (2009), or Rocket Singh (2009). You channel something emotionally, through something else. But being yourself is very hard. Character-based movies are more exciting because you say to yourself, "Okay, I can be this and be that." But, to some extent, continue to be, is another challenge I have to familiar. I guess you have to believe in yourself. Yeh Jawaani spoke more about Ayan's belief in me

Speaking of your personality, what I find really strange is that at a certain level, you call me introverted, and that you like to spend most of your time. you are alone. But, since the age of 13, you have always been in a relationship. This means that you are also looking for the company all the time. Last year, you said, it was when you were single for a long time, for the first time. I guess that's changed?
See the thing is …

Has this changed?
There are so many questions here. I do not want to cause any misunderstanding, that I will end up clearing for the next six years of my life!
Find the love, the relationship, the company repeatedly is very rare. When you isolate yourself so much from the world, you tend to find that person whom you can dedicate, or direct any feeling and emotion towards. Because it comforts you and houses you. This person makes your life easy. And sometimes it comes in the form of friendship. Most of the time, yes, it comes in the form of a partner

You did not answer my question …
That's my answer.

Are you single now or not?
Uh … I'm not single. I will never be single.

Are you dating Alia Bhatt?
Main iss sawa ka jawab dene ke liye Raazi nahi hoon!

That was a good answer! How many of your movies have had so many romantic relationships, is there one where the worldview is closest to yours?
Well, I believe that characters do extraordinary things only when they are in love. No selfish character will do anything extraordinary. And when you are young, starting, most of the time love stories are written for you. It's a great genius. What you represent, believe in love, politics, people, society, the kind of reflections in your movies. Because I really do not do anything except my films.

You obviously do not make any political statements.
I make no political statement because I am not politics. Politics makes no difference in my life. I am not at the origin of anything. I live a luxurious life. I do not have water or housing problems. I have no problem, so who am I to comment on the policy?

Your next film is Brahmastra, in which you play a superhero. You are a natural actor; do you want to be a superhero? (Mohar Basu)
Brahmastra is not a superhero movie. You can call it a supernatural romantic fairy tale. And Ayan [Mukerji] will never write a character who has no truth. I think it's too early to talk about Brahmastra, but Ayan will spend the next 10 years of his life in this trilogy. That's all he wants to do. So I'm really excited. We also need your excitement.

So, it's also the next 10 years of your life?
Yes. What Ayan does allows me to make two films between each [edition of] Brahmastra. So I make this film every year and a half

Is it too safe to plan a franchise even before the first is a success?
But he wrote it in a format of three films. So when Part 1 of Brahmastra ends, you know it's not the end.

Are there any personal tips that you apply to all movies as an actor? (Veeral Pathak)
In addition to marrying the director's mind, and really understanding the text, I do a lot of silly things – like, it may seem silly to me that I wear a scent for each character [I play]. I have a very strong sense of smell, so when I smell this perfume, it brings me closer to this character

What did you wear for Sanju?
I went to his house [Dutt’s] and I stole his perfume! It's this really strong macho perfume that I would never wear otherwise. Each AD on the board was like, "What are you wearing?" But that helped me stay in the character! Then I'm very bad at remembering the lines. When I have long dialogues , I emphasize not how I look, nor how I am going to play, but I do not see the dialogs wrong.It is very embarrbading for an actor.And this has happened only for two or three years. I used to be pretty good at this before I'm very scared I can not be old, I'm only 35. What's up? What's wrong? Too much coffee? Is it bad habits?

Stoner?
It was another life

Drinking Problems?
Another life! As I l ​​& rsquo; I said, every movie comes with a new process.Because Sanju was a biopic, dealing with a real life character, you had to go further.When Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016), I Asked Karan Johar what my process should be, he said, "Shut up and come on the set with a big smile. That's what you are! "

Much of that could also come naturally to you, being the fourth-generation actor." Speaking of which, you are named after your grandfather, he was, in fact, & Ranbir Raj Kapoor "
It's because of this strange theory that all our names should start with R. I do not know why, they ended up missing names, I guess. My grandfather had the habit of signing Ranbir Raj Kapoor, but never used that name, so Shammi Kapoor suggested that I be named Ranbir!

Is there any particular story about Raj Kapoor who is still shared at family reunions?
Many of them.We talk about him as anybody would talk about their grandfather.For example, the fact that After 8:30 pm, no one would want to come across with him – not even his wife or children – because he would take three glbades, and then all those who come will have a lecture about their lives. People were crawling at his door to avoid his gaze! I was six when he died and it was said that he loved me very much. So whenever my mother screamed at me, he was calling and was very angry with her.

I recently read a biography of Shammi Kapoor, and I told myself that his life was as good as a movie. It was something else!
Sanjay Dutt used to tell me that he heard the stories of Shammi Kapoor as we hear Dutt's stories! I really can not talk about these stories on this platform, because they're completely crazy!

What really connects you and Shammi Kapoor, is that you are the only two Kapoors to have finished clbad 10 without having failed! True?
But I also did the standard 12! (Laughs) I remember that I was helping dad on Aa Ab Laut Chalein when my clbad 10 results came out. We were in America. And I had 54%. When my dadi [grandmother] saw her, she thought I had to laugh Einstein paida hua hai! She organized a party in America, gave me a lot of money to shop around. I felt like a scientist in my family!

On the same note (funny), did you see the recent Hindi version of Deadpool 2? There is a line there by Ranveer that stinks Bombay Velvet. It's not as if it's the worst movie of all time, and you're also taking a lot of pot-shots on the movie.
No I did not know about it [in Deadpool 2]. Well, the expectations were too high with this movie. There was this mbadive star that I was creating, a certain arrogance coming from the mbadive budget of the filmmakers, and its subsequent income. That's really the thing. I take pictures with every film I make. J'ai goûté un si grand désastre avec mon tout premier film [Saawariya]étant la cible de blagues à toutes les cérémonies de remise des prix.

Littéralement.
Littéralement, oui! Je suis né dans l'industrie, et je comprends la valeur du succès, de l'échec. Vous devriez le posséder, c'est le vôtre. Quand vous faites un film, tout le monde est en voyage. Vous avez pbadé 80-85 jours, il semble que la vérité. C'est seulement quand vous voyez le film, vous dites …

Est-ce qu'il y avait un tel point avec Bombay Velvet, par exemple?
Quand Karan [Johar] et moi avons vu le film, un an avant sa sortie, La voiture et la première chose que j'ai demandé était: «Je sais que nous sommes foutus, mais comment sommes-nous foutus?" Karan a dit: "Trop foutu!"

Alors tu le savais? que peut-être le public l'aimera. Je tournais Wake Up Sid et Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani simultanément. Wake Up Sid d'Ayan avait une vibe jeune et cool. Ajab était dirigé par Rajkumar Santoshi, qui vient d'une certaine génération. Tous ses AD étaient plus âgés que lui. Je pensais que Wake Up était mon «Titanic». Il a publié en août, a fait R40 crore, m'a crédibilité. Et puis je me méfiais d'Ajab, pensant que ma carrière serait terminée après ça. Katrina m'a toujours dit: "Tu es stupide; ça va être un succès. Vous devriez vous en tenir là. »Quand il a été libéré, il a doublé les chiffres. C'est à ce moment-là que je me suis rendu compte qu'en tant que garçon Bandra, qui va étudier à l'étranger, je ne sais pas ce qu'est l'Inde ou le cinéma indien. Cette industrie n'a pas de formule fixe

Du point de vue du public, ce qui aurait pu être le plus décevant était votre troisième film cette même année: Rocket Singh!
J'ai tellement d'amour pour ce film. Mais où étaient ces gens quand le film a été publié? Je me souviens qu'Aditya Chopra a dit que je ne devrais pas promouvoir le film, parce que j'avais déjà promu deux films cette année-là; trouvé commercial, et le succès critique. Je pensais que Rocket Singh était mon 'Munnabhai'. Mais il y avait quelque chose de mal avec ça. Il n'a pas parlé aux gens comme il aurait dû. Si c'était un bon film, il aurait bien fait.

Transcrit par Mohar Basu, Sonil Dedhia et Sonia Lulla

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