Madhureeta Mukherjee (BOMBAY TIMES; July 30, 2018)

His superlative acts on screen have proven his mettle as an actor, repeatedly. He’s an actor who you grow to love on the big screen and in reality. Yes, Ranveer Singh is a super showman, and he takes this job damn seriously. He can make you groove to his popular hook steps and go tattad tattad on the dance floor, or turn into an evil hot-blooded (and really hot looking, too) Alauddin Khilji in a period drama. The minute he walks out of the make-believe world, with his addictive energy (and often in his bizarrely-styled clothes) he’s seen hugging fans, clicking selfies in dozens or backslapping the paps. “That’s me with my entertainer hat on, which is also a part of the real me,” explains the actor. He basks is his stardom, but never lets the weight of that tear him away from his fans. They adore him, and he wins them over, in his own odd and charming ways. In a chat with BT, he talks about the dramatic aftereffects of playing a vile character onscreen, the creative hunger in him and how all this fame and adulation still makes him feel like he’s waking up from a dream. Read on…

Your year started with a degree of uncertainty, as Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat (where you portrayed Alauddin Khilji) had to go through a trial of its own to reach the theatres. Eventually, all the blood and sweat paid off and the film went on to become a success. But more than that, as an actor, has this experience prepared you to break more norms and take more such risks in your career?
I was fully aware that for a mainstream leading man like me to play such a dark and evil role at this stage of my career was a risk. I was s**t scared. There were people who told me… “If you are going to play a villain at this stage, how is the audience going to react to it?” Of course, they meant well for me. I had faith in the audience, and I believe that they have evolved. They can see a performance for what it is and separate the actor from that. I also know that our audience is emotional, so when they love a character that you have played, they will shower love upon you. I was apprehensive… ki aise ulta nahin ho jaaye… that if they hate the character, then they end up hating me. But I convinced myself with the belief that today’s audience can recognise a performance for what it is. Alauddin Khilji was a multilayered, juicy character for me to play, but personally, it was a huge risk. The time when it was offered to me, I was in a very happy and light mind space. Ideally, I wanted to do a comedy, and I wasn’t ready to play such a dark character. Also, knowing my process, I could foresee that this was going to take me into some dark web. I knew that iss me ghusa…toh bahut lamba ghus jaaonga. When you are playing a character like this, you have to dig into some deep, buried life experiences. To generate that kind of darkness, and to tap into it on a daily basis for so long, takes its toll on someone. It took a toll on me, too.

So when you perform characters that are deep, disturbing or even dark, do you feel a sense of purge? It’s like expelling any negative energy that resides within…
I can say that playing Alauddin Khilji has given me a lesson in humanity. I felt lighter, kinder, humbler, more sensitive and more respectful of people around me. All that darkness and kachra that was inside me, I purged it while playing Khilji. I set it on fire and it combusted. The most evil character of my career made me a better human being. There were some demons that I tapped into, but at the same time, there was a lot more that I had to generate within myself to be convinced enough to play such an evil character and do the kind of things he does..

Going so deep into a role can be scary at times…
I feel the need to challenge myself and see how far I can go into a character. Alauddin was fulfilling in that sense, as there are times when I completely lost myself in the character. Yes, it’s very scary too. The struggle was very internal. I am glad Bhansali came in and tempered my vision, as I was making some very extreme choices. I was prepared to go to lengths from where I probably wouldn’t be able to come back easily. In the process of being Khilji from morning to evening, I had started losing my bearings. Also, I thought that this is perhaps, the first and last time I will play an antagonist. I don’t want to play such dark characters often, as it takes you to a place that is uncomfortable, at least in my process. A lot of people can create such characters by means of projection, I can’t do that. For me, each prep process is unique. For Band Baaja Baaraat (2010), I had infiltrated a college campus, introduced myself as Bittu Sharma and lived with students for a week without them being aware of it. For Lootera (2013) which was a period film, I did intensive workshops. For Goliyon Ki Raasleela - Ram Leela (2013), I did a lot of prep work in Gujarat. For Bajirao Mastani (2015) and Padmaavat (2018), I lived in isolation for days. For the upcoming, Zoya Akhtar’s Gully Boy, I spent a lot of time with the rapper boys. This is the only way I know to work. Karo toh… go all out. I want to be the best at what I do, and by that I don’t mean the best in comparison to others, but I want to outdo my best.

Right after Padmaavat, you dived into Gully Boy, which is a film with a completely different vibe and feel. That must have been a relief?
I was so physically and emotionally exhausted at the end of Padmaavat’s shoot that I was waiting to be liberated. Gully Boy was my saviour, it saved me from myself. The minute I gave the last shot of Padmaavat, something switched inside me. The very next day, I started work on Gully Boy (set against the backdrop of the desi hip hop scene in Mumbai). Also, I think I had to move on to something immediately for my own sanity. I started spending time with Zoya, reading the script and meeting the rapper boys. It is the best thing that I could do for myself. We would jam on raps, and spend time with them at their hangout places, meet their friends and talk for hours. What I realised during the process is that this is so close to who I am. After all, I am a Mumbai ka ladka. The rapper boys were surprised to see that… yeh toh hamari bhasha bolta hai. The minute I started hanging out with them, I knew I had slipped into the character.

There are various shades to your persona. On one side, you could go into isolation for weeks to prep for an intense character, on the other side, you surprise people by popping up on the busy streets of Mumbai and breaking into a dance, or showing up an event wearing a filmi posture costume. From extremely deep to hilariously outrageous — you slip into these roles — some reel, some real. Not every actor can pull off these antics…
That’s the showman in me. That’s me with my entertainer hat on, which is also a part of the real me. I love to make people happy, I love to entertain. I love to infuse joie de vivre into scenarios and spaces that I enter. It comes naturally to me and that’s the person that I have become today. Over a period of time, I have received so much of love and appreciation from people that it has really made me a grounded person. There is a constant stream of energy flowing out of me, this phase of my life is creatively so exciting; I feel like I am on fire. The more work I do, I realise how limitless the craft is. The more I feel hungry to explore, I realise that time is not enough for the kind and variety of roles that I want to play.

If one were to closely observe the way you have been in the public eye, from your first film Band Baaja Baaraat to now, your demeanour hasn’t changed. You are still quick to hug a fan or click a selfie to win them over…
I think if I hadn’t fulfilled my lifelong dream of being an actor, I would have been a different person. I would have probably been cynical, as I would believe that I haven’t been dealt the right cards in life. It’s not that when I was starting out I was dealt some great cards; I was also dealt okayish cards. I read these lines somewhere and I believe this…You don’t have a right to the cards you believe you should have been dealt. You have an obligation to play the hell out of the cards you are holding. Today, I do what I love to do for a living; I became what I wanted to. I have a loving, close-knit family; I have friends who have been with me for more than half my life. I’m not religious, but I am spiritual, so I make it a point to count my blessings and thank the universe for everything in my life. I know that the universe had to put some things in place for me to be here. My life and my journey remind me of these lines from a rap song… blessings on blessings on blessings, look at my life man that’s lessons on lessons on lessons (Blessings by Big Sean). When I look at the larger picture, what do I have to complain about? I guess those who don’t feel that they are blessed, could probably have a cynical point of view in life. And maybe, they think that what I am projecting is fake, and I am hoping that over a period of time they will realise that is the person I truly am. Yaar, main actor ban gaya, usse badi kaunsi baat hai! Once I was having dinner with Akshay Kumar, and he said, “Tu soch sakta hai kitne badi baat hai, ki hum jaise do log actor ban gaye”. Sometimes, when I see my face on the big screen and on billboards, I still have to pinch myself to believe that this is really happening.