Deepali Singh (DNA; June 30, 2019)

Filmmaker Shoojit Sircar gave actor Ayushmann Khurrana his first break in Vicky Donor in 2012. The duo is now teaming up for Gulabo Sitabo. However, apart from Shoojit, Ayushmann has never repeated his directors. We were curious to know what made the talented star collaborate with different filmmakers each time. When we asked the Article 15 actor, he told us that he goes with the story first. “I’m obsessed with the story. Also, you get to know the sensibility of a director when you meet him for the first time,” he said.

The 34-year-old reminded us that he has teamed up with new directors like RS Prasanna for Shubh Mangal Saavdhan (2017) and Sharat Katariya for Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015). “It’s just that you need to jam together and see whether you are on the same page as them or not. Eventually, you realise if this person can do a great job or not. I would love to repeat my directors. I would like to work with Sharat, Anubhav (Sinha) sir and Sriram (Raghavan) sir again. For that matter, even Amit (Sharma). His last film before Badhaai Ho (2018) was Tevar (2015). But if you are zeroing in on a particular subject and if you believe that the director can extract the best out of that, then you go with your gut,” he added.

Having grown up on a steady dose of commercial Hindi cinema, the versatile performer is a fan of masala entertainers. When quizzed if he would like to do something, say on the lines of a Simmba, he replied, “Yes, I would love to do that.”

However, there are some boxes he needs to tick before he says yes to a script like that. “It has to be quirky and different in that realm because that’s what excites me. Also, times are changing and you also have to evolve with them. Firstly, it has to be the one-of-its-kind attempt in Indian cinema. Secondly, it should have some resonance with the audience and thirdly, the credibility of the director matters, too,” he stated.

With his latest film garnering appreciation from all quarters, and his future projects Dream Girl, Bala and Gulabo Sitabo generating enough anticipation, suffice to say that an Ayushmann film has a lot of expectations. The artiste admits it’s a happy mix of nerves and excitement. “The success of my last four films gave me the courage to do an Article 15. That will happen with every two or three movies. I would want to do something hard hitting and relevant. At the same time, I should give credit to the amazing scriptwriters and directors I have worked with,” he concluded.