Meena Iyer (DNA; April 24, 2019)

Gen-Now sweetheart Varun Dhawan has flown to Bangkok to celebrate his 32nd birthday (today)with his boy gang. Whether or not, steady girlfriend Natasha Dalal travelled yesterday to ‘surprise’ the Bollywood superstar is not known. Of course, while VD himself was holidaying, his home banner decided to announce their first production Coolie No.1, an inspired version of the 1995 superhit. The film is directed by Varun’s prolific father David Dhawan, who is the pasha of commercial cinema. And, one will see the young actor team up with star beti, Sara Ali Khan.
Excerpts from a chat with him...

New-age actresses Janhvi Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan, Tara Sutaria, Ananya Panday and the likes want to team up with you. All of them feel you are the perfect mainstream hero.
What do I say (smiles)? I am happy and flattered. It’s a big responsibility. All of them are new and if they trust me at the start of their careers, then I have to take them past the finishing line. I do take that responsibility seriously when I share screen space with any actress for that matter. Whether it’s Shraddha (Kapoor), Alia (Bhatt), Jacqueline (Fernandez), with whom I’ve done two films or even Taapsee (Pannu), I’m sure I will act with them again. I did a song with Kiara (Advani) in Kalank and it was good working with her. We also performed at the Zee Cine Awards 2019 together. Kriti (Sanon), too, has surprised me. She was superb in Bareilly Ki Barfi and damn good in Luka Chuppi too. She’s done a song in Kalank as well. I get along famously with all of them.

How competitive are you? Today, it’s hard to pinpoint a No.1 because Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, Tiger Shroff and Ayushmann Khurana are all doing well.
I think it’s great. I’m a fan of Jim Sarbh’s work too. He was superb in Made In Heaven. He’s quite a cool guy. I’ve always been an admirer of talent. If I see someone is good, I feel happy and I’m upfront about it. These guys you named and even some whom you didn’t name, motivate me to do better work.

Honestly, I am competitive. I’m not some saint sitting in the Himalayas pretending that I’m not competitive. I want to be the best. There’s no doubt about it. I’m also doing a film which has ‘No. 1’ in it. I feel the competition in today’s day and age has changed. There are so many different avenues to compete and anyone who says he’s not competitive is lying.

Recently, during a conversation, Salman Khan mentioned your name and said he sees a spark in you. He seems fond of you.
It’s genuine affection. The relationship that we share is beyond films. He’s spent so much time with dad, having done a number of films with him that he’s part of the family. Salman bhai has always been magnanimous with people. He does so many things that go unnoticed. He is kind and has helped people. That’s his greatness. Sometimes, a lot of people misunderstand and choose to see other facets of his personality. They don’t realise that it’s his heart that makes him what he is. I don’t think anyone can have such a large heart. He’s incredible. I’ve spent a lot of time with him. I really love the way he works and the way he is with his parents, brothers and sisters. I have a brother and a family, too. If I can be a family man like him, then it would be a great quality to have.