Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; October 25, 2019)

Kriti Kharbanda is known for her quirky sense of humour and outspokenness. In a chat with BT, the actress, who will be seen in Housefull 4, talks about how comedy is serious business, acing the action scenes in the film and her funniest co-star on the set. Read on…

When a film has three heroes and three heroines, insecurities must be inevitable as you need to make your presence felt in the limited time that you get, right?
I’d be lying if I say I didn’t have any insecurities as an actor when I signed a multi-starrer. You always wonder how relevant you are to the film. It’s not an easy decision to make. Every actor has a certain amount of insecurity. But Housefull 4 made me realise that kiske paas kitna screen time hai is irrelevant. I signed my next multi-starrer, Pagalpanti, because of Housefull 4. Of course, this is an Akshay Kumar film; he and Riteish Deshmukh are the backbone of the franchise, but every actor helps in elevating the experience of a film. Plus, it feels like a healthy competition.

Since you are known to have a quirky sense of humour, does comedy come easily to you? Also, it’s easy to offend people these days, isn’t it?
Comedy is serious business, and I am proud of what I have been able to achieve here. I grew up on franchises like Housefull, Munnabhai and Golmaal, and so, working in this film is a big deal for me. A lot of people are quick to label this brand of comedy as offensive, but if it offends one person, it entertains hundreds. The intention is always to entertain everyone. The idea of reincarnation has been used in a fun way here, and the film has been made in good taste. Akshay’s character in the film is called Bala, but he is bald. That’s his insecurity, so whenever he thinks someone is mocking him, he says, ‘Tu taklya hai’. It’s not to offend anyone.

There’s another Kriti in the film — Kriti Sanon. How confusing was it for the cast to address you two?
Incidentally, her friends also call her Krits, so both of us were called Krits. Even during promotions, when anyone would say, ‘Kriti bataiyye’, both of us would answer. On the set, they used to address me as Kharbanda or KK. Akshay would call me Kharbanda in a Punjabi way to avoid the confusion.

What was your biggest takeaway from the film?
That I got to do action scenes with Khiladi Kumar. I learnt sword fighting for one of my characters in the film, as I am trained as a warrior. I am petite, and many wondered if I could pull it off, but I did. Even Sham Kaushal ji (action director) came up to me after those scenes and said, ‘Main chauk gaya. Tu chota packet bada dhamaka hai’. My shoulder was injured while learning the stunts, but I was never so motivated to go to work like I was during this shoot. That’s the best feeling — to want to go to work even if you are unwell.

Who was the funniest amongst your co-stars?
I get most of Bobby Deol’s jokes because we have worked together in Yamla Pagla Deewana: Phir Se (2018). He’s into toilet humour and likes to crack those jokes. Riteish is the funniest man I know. It was crazy fun to work with all of them. Even the girls were funny, but mujhe main bohot funny lagti hoon.