DNA (April 29, 2015)

The second trailer of Anurag Kashyap’s period film Bombay Velvet was unveiled with the entire cast and crew on Monday night. Though it was the first promotional event for the team, Anurag and his villain Karan Johar took centre stage. Anurag introduced Karan as ‘the sexiest person in Bandra’ and while everyone expected Ranbir to walk on to the stage, KJo walked in. It was a fun hour of question answer rounds. Here are a few highlights from the evening.

KJo and the paagal kutta
When asked if he would direct himself in a film, he immediately shot back by saying, “No, no, no.. Mujhe pagal kutte ne nahi kaata ki main apne aap ko cast karunga. Usko (Anurag Kashyap) kaata tha.” He went on to add, “Why would I cast myself and be my own liability? If anyone wants to put money on me, I’ll act. I am open to offers. Otherwise, also I am open.”

When RK pressed KJo
When Ranbir Kapoor was asked to describe his experience of working with Karan, everyone was in splits with their double-meaning banter. He said, “Karan has been my personal mentor and in this film also he plays my mentor. I used to laugh in the initial days when he used to say dialogues. I remember there was a scene where I had to press Karan against the window of the car. Karan got very charged and told me, ‘Tu mujhe dabba.’ Not in that sense. So from the time I started pressing him (against the window), he started getting hurt. But he was so engrossed that he kept telling me, ‘Tu dabate jaa, dabate jaa’ Eventually, after pack-up he had to take some pain killer as he had a migraine problem.” Karan then added, “Tune achi tarah se nahi dabaya. If you had pressed properly, I wouldn’t get hurt.”

Bolly aur dosti
Talking about the feedback on his role from his friends, the director said, “Bollywood main kiske dost hote hai? People are there, but not friends. What will people say? They will say good things to your face, but if they feel it’s not good then they will tweet about it or will say something behind your back. I would in fact want to know the media’s view. Why should I ask the members of the industry?”

KJo: Cast Anurag? NO!
When Karan was quizzed about casting Anurag for any of his films, he replied, “I won’t cast him. I only cast good looking actors, why would I take Anurag? Am I mad? Anurag is not the type of person I would cast. I don’t make the kind of films in which Anurag would fit. Have you ever imagined him in New York? He either goes to a village (Gangs of Wasseypur) or into the 1960s (Bombay Velvet). Abroad won’t suit him.”

Ranbir on marriage plans
When asked about Katrina’s recent statement that their marriage will be like a circus, he said, “I think you cannot keep it private. We are actors and it should not be. Wedding is a celebration and I just say this.. (blank) My wedding date was fixed six years ago. Ever since I came into this industry, everyone has been saying I am getting married. It’s a special day so let me announce it. But right now there are no plans. I am in love and I do feel a sense of commitment and responsibility. But when it comes to wedding, so much speculation spoils the fun. You want to set a date and you want to really celebrate. I would request the media to stop speculating about my wedding date because I will put the date out. I will not hide and get married. I also want to celebrate the institution.

Anushka says ‘chup be’
The actress was in a relaxed mood as she wasn’t required to answer any questions on beau Virat Kohli. She was her chirpy self as she was talking about the preparations for her role of a jazz singer. She was speaking fast and Ranbir who was sitting next to her, asked her to calm down and speak slowly. She shot back with a ‘chup be.’ This word seems to have caught her fancy as she uttered it a couple of times after that.

Anurag vs KRK Twitter war
“Kamaal R Khan has given me an open challenge that if Bombay Velvet does well, then he would cut off his special weapon. So, we are now planning to send him a very specially designed ice-box so that we can keep his special weapon on display at the upcoming Museum of Indian Cinema so that we can display India’s most inconsequential critic"