Happening star Ayushmann Khurrana on a hot streak breaks down his craft and shares how he took the quirky route and barged into Bollywood's coveted Rs 100-crore club
Mayank Shekhar (MID-DAY; December 20, 2018)

Firstly, why are you Ayushmann? Shouldn't it be Ayush-man, or Ayush-maan?
If your dad's an astrologer, you have no option but to be born with these spellings! I did not change the spelling, before becoming an actor.

And I believe he changed your name from Nishant, to begin with?
Yes, I was three at the time. I think I'm also the oldest Ayushmann in the world. Now, I see kids who are five or six, named Ayushmann, but none older.

While you're an accomplished lead actor now, someone clearly thought you had a face for radio, which is how you began your career, as an RJ!
(Laughs) I have evolved so much, not just as an actor, but also how I look. You only have to see my pictures [from much younger] — I used to have braces, crooked teeth, used to wear glasses, and was quite a nerd.

So it's radio, Roadies, then a sportscaster on IPL, you had done the full round before your first film.
I always wanted to be an actor but was pretty sure nobody would launch me. Television was a decent route though. I became a VJ on MTV. By default, every VJ gets a chance to be an actor. I had said no to at least five to six films before Vicky Donor (2012).

Do you remember reading any lousy scripts back then?
There was a script called KLPD: Kisses, Love, Pizza and Dhoka. It was a sex comedy. So, I went to Bangkok for a shoot that never started. There was some production locha, we came back. While I was there, I realised, something is off. I was 24. It was this weird story of four couples who fall in love with each other.

What is about filmmakers that they look at you and associate you in some odd way with [stories about] sex?
It's the innocence, the earnestness. I give the clean vibe. That's what Shoojit Sircar told me, when I asked him why he chose me for a sperm donor's role. Do I look like one? And he was like, 'You just look very sanitised.' He said you give a clean vibe, ki achcha ladka hai. Sanskari hai.

You got your first film role, with Shoojit Sircar's Vicky Donor, without a screen test. And your last role, in Sriram Raghavan's Andhadhun, is the first time you auditioned for a part. How did that happen?
I was hosting shows on MTV and Shoojit sir was like, I just want you to be as you are as a VJ: the loud Punjabi guy. So, I did not audition for the part of Vicky Donor. With the last film [Andhadhun], I got to know that he [Sriram Raghavan] had not short-listed anybody for that role. I got to know the one-liner from [casting agent] Mukesh Chhabbra. And I texted him [Raghavan]. He said this is not a slice-of-life film. I said that's why I have come to you. I always wanted to do a thriller, and was getting scripts as well. But, I wanted to work with Sriram Raghavan, because I'm a huge fan-boy.

Fan-boy because of?
Ek Hasina Thi (2004) — that transformed Saif [Ali Khan] for me. Badlapur (2015) transformed Varun [Dhawan] for me. And I wanted my transformation with him. Glad that happened.

Speaking of mentors, the idea of the Godfather has dramatically changed in showbiz. Would you consider MTV as the first, and then Yash Raj as the second?
I would call Shoojit Sircar and Aditya Chopra as my two mentors; and on TV, there was [producer] Siddhartha Basu, who gave me my first TV show, India's Got Talent. He [Basu] gave me a lot of training, to work on my diction and other aspects as an anchor. Similarly, we had lots of workshops for Vicky Donor, because I had been hosting for four-five years, and had to unlearn a lot of stuff, like looking into the camera, for instance. I had to ignore the camera, for a change, and become an actor. So I went to MK Sharma's Act One [in Delhi].

How did Aditya Chopra and you meet?
That was during Bewakoofiyaan (2014). I was not interested in that film and had issues with the script. I told him that I wanted to do this film [only] because I wanted to get into Yash Raj. I asked him why can't you [Yash Raj] manage me anyway? He said, no, you have to do a film with us; then we can manage you. Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015) was offered to me a month after Bewakoofiyaan started. I was really excited about it. And he [Chopra] was surprised, because it was not a "hero wali" film. He said people won't like you in the first half. And I was okay with that. The script was so unique. After both films released, he began respecting me. He was like, you have an eye for scripts. Sometimes, he bounces certain scripts off me, just to have me read them.

What, according to you, is a good script sense?
I think I should relate to it first. Sometimes, I feel I'm the audience. Most people think audience will like it, even if you don't. But you have to be the audience, to begin with. This thought comes from my theatre background, because we used to write our own scripts. We did street theatre, which is meant to be dark and content-based. But we started making entertaining street plays.

Like singing, dancing, instead of activism, on the streets?
We would have guitars, percussions, so it was like a fun fair. We would do it anywhere — marketplace, college, university. There was a chant, something like, 'Zor se bolo, natak dekho. Saare bolo, DAV ka natak dekho.' DAV was our college. There was a saafa [turban cloth] spread out, and everyone would give money.

You also made money from passengers on college train trips from Chandigarh.
Frankly, most of the kids were from well-off families, so doing this was fun. We'd come to IIT Powai every year in second class sleeper train, sponsored by college. We'd play guitar, dholak, sing retro songs for passengers. I remember one person gave us Rs 500, and we were like kaun hai yeh aadmi? (Laughs). One of our Goa trips after Mood Indigo got sponsored this way.

Glad you said you're from a well-off family. Assuming you haven't slept on Mumbai streets, because everyone from Amitabh Bachchan to Shah Rukh Khan has that exact same story!
Well, we did once miss our train to Goa, and we had to stay the night on Mumbai Central. So yes, station pe soye thhe! I could afford a hotel room, but not for all my friends. It's not that I have a sob story. I came to Mumbai on a plane. Since I didn't have a place, I stayed with a friend in KEM Hospital's hostel. I would go to give auditions, but while coming and going out of the hostel, I'd wear a laboratory coat so no one catches me.



Most traditional Indian parents force their kids to study medicine, engineering. Your father forced you to come to Mumbai and become an actor.
Well, I took sciences in high school, cleared a dental college exam in Karnataka and when I went there, I realised I won't be able to do it. So, I came back to Chandigarh to study arts. After journalism, I thought of taking a sabbatical for two years, because I was not satisfied with myself as an actor. My father told me to go out there [to Mumbai] and learn on the job. He said there is no wrong time to do the right thing.

Now in this nepotism argument, a point that people miss is that there could be such a thing as new fame and old fame. Being from a famous family could just make it easier to deal with fame, because you've already closely seen the ups and downs. You went to an all boys' school, college, became a superstar with your first film, suddenly when there is so much female attention, for instance; did it shake you up?
That happened to me when I was 18. I was on the second season of a reality show called Pop Stars on Channel V, which was won by a group called Asma. I was the first back-up singer for that band; the only one from Chandigarh. I had suddenly become a star in the first year of college. Mera dimaag kharab ho gaya tha! I was getting attention from girls, apart from my girlfriend. I broke up with my girlfriend then, now wife [Tahira Kashyap]. One year after that was disastrous for me, because nothing happened. Then, I realised this is all fickle. Later, Roadies happened, when I was more mature. So I got exposed to these things early in life. And it wasn't sudden fame after Vicky Donor either. It was gradual. Yes, I did have marital issues after Vicky Donor, since everyone wanted a piece of me. As an RJ and VJ, I would work for around 12 days, and the rest were free. So, I had a lot of time for Tahira and we would travel a lot then. Suddenly, everything stopped. I didn't have a single minute for her, and the worst part was she was pregnant. I was a father when the movie [Vicky Donor] released, but I had no time for the family. I was consumed with my own success. It was a professional high and a personal low.

Has that been the story of your life?
Yes. Even now, there is professional high, but personally, very tough [phase]. We are together, but she [Tahira] has gone through cancer. It's always been like that.

If you had to choose between personal and professional, which one would you go for?
(Long pause) It's tough to answer. At the same time, you need to have a solid personal life. Because everything will go. But this will stay.

Getting back to your professional life, your films have also been timed in quick succession — in 2017, Bareilly Ki Barfi and Shubh Mangal Saavdhan released two weeks apart, same with Andhadhun and Badhaai Ho this year. If both went down, you'd be screwed!
It's a coincidence. You'd never want your films to come back-to-back, but I have realised, if your films are good, they will work. Last year [with Bareilly and Shubh Mangal], I was nervous, as both the films had similar texture, and our designers were the same. My mother-in-law, played by Seema Pahwa, was the same. People were getting confused watching the two trailers. Some went to watch Shubh Mangal Saavdhan but had booked tickets for Bareilly Ki Barfi, since both were playing at the same time. This time around, I wasn't nervous, as both Badhaai Ho and Andhadhun had different milieus.

The other back-to-back releases were Hawaizaada and Dum Laga Ke Haisha in 2015. Can you explain what made you choose Hawaizaada?
Just the one-liner I heard. I was fascinated with the character, who apparently constructed India's first unmanned plane before the Wright brothers. But, I realised that it's not necessary that a film that has a good one-liner will last for two hours [the same way]. Every failure is a learning. Hawaizaada should have been more real. I was not expecting a fantasy, or a love story, taking over from the facts and other elements in the film.

Apparently, Aditya Chopra called you up after Hawaizaada's release and said that nobody's luck turns around in 20 days, but yours will. Take us through the phone call.
I was in Chandigarh that time and I needed a break. I wasn't going through my social media, had switched off my phone and was just chilling. But he reached out and said that we have a release on February 27. I was shocked. Pehle hi lagi padi thi and itni jaldi ye aa raha hai (laughs). He said that this is going to be a blessing in disguise and will change your fortune. And it did.

You, Vicky Kaushal and Rajkummar Rao show up on Karan Johar's talk show, where guests are routinely asked to rank the three of you. What's also common between you all is that you've subverted the idea of on-screen masculinity through your roles. You come from Chandigarh, which is the most macho city ever. How did you get to subversion of masculinity from there?
This happened because the scripts are more real, and the credit should go to scriptwriters. Of course, as actors, we have chosen those scripts, and are taking their idea forward. Coming from Chandigarh, I have gone through a transition myself. Back in the day, I was slightly patriarchal. I wasn't exposed to certain things. I came to Mumbai, and before that, Delhi. I believe everyone goes through a change. The idea is to make every small-town guy be a part of that change. There are two different countries in India — urban, which is 25-30 per cent; and the other that's rural. We need to get these two together. I expect that change to happen [to everyone] through cinema, or literature.

Give me an example in the way you have changed?
My mother is a housewife. When I started dating Tahira, I told her that you don't need to work, and that I'll be the breadwinner. She was shocked. She told me it wasn't about the money. She wanted to pursue her passion for herself. I told her then that we can't marry. And she told me, 'That's cool. We should definitely not marry!' She has been instrumental in changing me. I was uncouth and was brought up among rustic guys in Chandigarh, Haryana and Punjab. I went to an all boys' school. I didn't even know how to talk to a woman. She turned me into a gentleman. Whatever I am today, I owe a lot to my wife.

When you go back, do you find your friends to be just the way they were?
Most of them have changed, but some have remained similar. During Diwali, I always go back to Chandigarh. I was having debates about the #MeToo movement hearing stuff like, 'Abhi kya bolne ki zaroorat thi. Dus saal pehle kyun nahi bola?' Everybody was making the same argument. And I was like, 'Kya kar rahe ho yaar? Ab toh badal jao!'

Speaking of #MeToo movement, I'm told, you've had an incident yourself. Take us through it?
It was a gay casting-director. I have nothing against him. I was new to the city, and he said, 'Why don't you come and show me your d*** and I'd like to feel it, and you'll get a role!' If I was gay, I would have thought about it. I was single at the time! I told him that I wanted to make it with my own talent; otherwise I wouldn't be happy getting the role. We had a healthy discussion and parted ways.

We're going to end with confirming two rumours about you. One, that you've actually donated sperm; true?
Yes! I did it in Allahabad, during Roadies, in 2004. Sperm donation was a task. Guys with the highest sperm count would go in the next round. So I was in top three. So Vicky Donor was like method acting for me [laughs]. Shoojit Sircar was shocked when I told him about this incident.

And you brush four times a day?
Yes! I have an OCD. It started when I had braces, and the food would get stuck, so I used to brush a lot. And this habit has continued.

Transcribed by Mohar Basu, Sonil Dedhia and Sonia Lulla

Madhureeta Mukherjee (BOMBAY TIMES; April 3, 2018)

He’s a many-sided man. Showing off his acting chops on celluloid is only one part of it. Ayushmann Khurrana is a singer, composer, poet and now he’s found new love in shayari, too. He believes that if he only pursues acting, he will “get lost somewhere,” and this is where his strong sense of security stems from. The fact that he can tap in to his variety of talent, gives him that edge of confidence. Slowly but surely, he nestled himself in the showbiz game, where fate is fickle, but talent is lauded. He went through the grind, but he found his groove. And last year, he had an impressive run at the BO with films like Bareilly Ki Barfi and Shubh Mangal Saavdhan. His upcoming Junglee Pictures’ and Chrome Pictures’ Badhaai Ho, is another film that’s driven totally by an innovative concept. In a free-flowing chat with BT, he talks to us about his take on life and acting, confesses that he’s never followed advice doled out to him on ‘how to behave like a star’ and how he’s never lost touch with reality. Read on...

You started working at the age of 17 on reality shows on TV, then you went on to become a VJ, anchor et al. Was it all a means to make it to the silver screen?
I always knew that I wanted to be actor. I started working when I was 17, but I was participating in reality shows, so I didn’t take it as a job. I was a part of the reality show wave in 2002. Back then, no one had seen non-fiction on TV and we had no reference point, so we all were just excited to see cameras around us. Not many know that I had done a fiction show called Kayaamat for exactly one month. I also did Ek Thi Rajkumari, though I don’t think anyone watched the show. That was the plan — I wanted to be on TV, but in such a way that no one watched me. I got paid while preparing to be an actor. Earlier, there was this notion that if you do TV you can’t do films. My experience of doing fiction, non-fiction, anchoring shows like India’s Got Talent, Just Dance and many more, gave me the confidence for my career. I realised that if you connect with the youth, you are home. Children love Varun Dhawan for the kind of films he is doing. If you can successfully connect with kids and the youth — you have cracked it.

Did you face the kind of roadblocks that many people who transition from the small screen to the big screen experience? However prepared you might be as an actor; the dynamics of the big screen are different…
I was told by industry people, “You are so normal; you are like just another guy. Why don’t you behave like a star? When you walk in, people should be falling for you”. But I tried telling them that I wanted to do real cinema and real stuff. I wanted to play roles that people could connect with. This was around 2007-08, at that time no one understood what I was trying to say. I would give auditions and people would say, “Woh star material dikhna chahiye”. I said theek hai, but I never took them seriously. I am glad that I was part of that phase of cinema that started in 2012 with films like Kahaani and Vicky Donor. Now, it’s caught on, content is the king and you have to own the character. It is not about being somebody else on screen, but discovering yourself.

Seeing success and rejection at the start of your career must have toughened you up for the journey ahead…
I am a passionate actor, but I am also very practical. I started with plan C to reach plan A. Like I mentioned earlier, I have had such a variety of experiences before I became a big screen actor, that now I don’t feel any sense of insecurity. Tomorrow, if I want to pack my bags and go back, I can do it. I can be a programming head in Shimla, do my morning shows and enjoy it. If my films don’t do well, I won’t feel insecure about the question, ‘what will you do next?’ I also pursue music passionately. If I only pursue acting then I will get lost somewhere. I need to do other things to make my life interesting. Only if you live your life fully can you translate all of that on celluloid. If you are only an actor 24/7, then what else will you do? If you are only surrounded by people from the cinema world, then, you can’t be in touch with normal people. I often go with my manager to the chai ki tapri, and talk to them about kya chal raha hai unke zindagi mein. The people who are sitting there and reading the paper, un logon ne shaayad meri filmein bhi nahin dekhi hai. Right now, I am a multiplex actor. Kuch bhi bolo, main abhi bhi single screen ka hero nahin hoon. I want to become one. I want to reach out to those people, hence I need to know them. A lot of my experiences also come from doing theatre in my younger days. I had formed two theatre groups in Chandigarh. In those days, we would travel from Chandigarh to Mumbai in second class sleeper compartments. We were 15 boys who would carry our guitars and dholaks and do street theatre. During our train journey, we would go from one bogie to the other and sing for the passengers. They would be so thrilled that they would give us anything ranging from Rs 5 to Rs 100. I have gone through these amazing experiences and that’s why I say that I am a trained singer, kyunki maine train mein gaya hai (laughs).

Well, now there are more opportunities for all kinds of actors to fit into the Bollywood space, owing to the kind of films that are being made. In your case, it appears that you were lucky to be there in the right place at the right time, too?
Life is like musical chairs, when the music stops, there has to be an empty chair next to you. Most of the time, it doesn’t depend on you. If I wanted to be an actor in the ’80s or ’90s, it would have been a lot tougher, because back then nepotism was prevalent, not now. I don’t think it happens now, as every day new directors, producers and actors are coming up. There is no filter that isko nahin aane denge. If you have talent you will survive.

Earlier, most of the strugglers would stand outside big movie studios, with stars in their eyes and wonder… kabhi entry milegi yahaan? Right now, the casting system is so streamlined, if you are talented and get selected for the audition, you can make it work. That’s how every few months we see debutantes doing well. We are living in a time when only talent counts.

After a great start in the movies with Vicky Donor, was there immense pressure about what to do next? Your following films Nautanki Sala, Bewakoofiyaan, Hawaizaada were disappointments at the box office. Did you grapple to find your ground?
Yes, there was pressure. I had said no to a lot of films even before signing Vicky Donor. I always thought that my first film should be really good. As an outsider, if your first film is not good, then you are finished. Nobody will give you a second chance. Post my debut, I had to choose something path-breaking like Vicky Donor, and I was not getting that kind of film again… Aisi filmein mushkil se banti hai. I went the conventional route and did films like Nautanki Saala and Bewakoofiyaan, which didn’t do well at all. When that happens, more than the pressure felt by the actor, the producer of his next film gets the heebie-jeebies. Today, when I listen to a film’s narration, I don’t look at it as what it will do to my image or the fact that isme mujhe kya karna hai. The priority is that the story should work in totality. If that is okay, then, I come to my part in the story. Initially, I would think about myself first and that’s been a learning process. As an actor you should not get lost in the crowd, you need to create a space for yourself.

Has success changed you? Do you view life from a different lens now?
The highs and lows that I have seen in the past 5 years have kept me sane. I always feel that success is very fickle, while failure is your friend, philosopher and guide. It teaches you a lot and makes you rational. In this volatile industry, things change every Friday. Apart from that, being a family man gives me a different perspective towards life. I became a father when I was 27, so I am not living the life of a bachelor or thinking… main toh superstar hoon, yeh ho jayega, woh ho jayega. I can’t do that, I have to think about the future as well.

Did you start off with ambitions of being a superstar? Today, are you aggressively ambitious?
Andar se sabhi ambitious hote hai. You are faking it if you say mujhe yeh nahin banna hai. But yes, I am ambitious as far as my craft and passion is concerned. I want to do good quality cinema and path-breaking roles. Beyond that, no one has control over what happens in this business.

You just wrapped up the Delhi schedule of your next Junglee Pictures’ and Chrome Pictures’ Badhaai Ho, directed by Amit Sharma. I believe that this one is also an unconventional story in the quirky space…
Yes, it is again a quirky film; I think I own the quirky film genre. Agar koi actor aisey film karna chahata hai, he should be told, ‘Ayushmann ke type ki film kar rahe ho (laughs)’. The best part of my character in the film is that he’s very urban in the office space and very desi when he’s home. Most middleclass Delhi guys are like that. They speak English in office, par ghar pe koi English bolta hi nahi. It’s a very cool story, though I can’t reveal too much about it.

While you career as an actor is flourishing, your passion for music has never moved out of focus. Did you dream of being a rockstar, someday?
If you love doing something, you don’t need to make time for it. You will figure out how to do it. Yes, I have always dreamt of being a rockstar. My friend Rochak and I had a band in school, and we would jam with geometry boxes and sing along. In college, we would do street plays with eight guitarists and a few guys on the dholak. Imagine the visual and the sound… it is overwhelming. It creates euphoria and madness. So in our heads we were rockstars and we would own that space. We would love performing in an all-girls college as our band was from an all-boys college. It was a crazy high.

DNA (August 13, 2015)


But B-Town’s favourite fashionista Sonam Kapoor has been there, done that. Sonam flaunted her curves in a similar pink number in the movie Bewakoofiyaan, which released in 2014.

The only difference is that while Sonam was shown chilling by a pool with Ayushmann in the movie, Alia is seen walking down a beach with Shahid gawking at her during his jog on the beach.

And though their beach wear is similar, both girls look super fit in their bikini-clad avatar. Obviously, a lot of hours in the gym are behind these short bikini moments.

Ayushmann Khurrana breathes a sigh of relief as Dum Laga Ke Haisha comes as a welcome respite from his spate of current failures
Sneha Mahadevan (DNA; March 7, 2015)


Your debut Vicky Donor was a huge hit, but you couldn’t make a mark with your other films after that. Was it disappointing?
I have been rejected in most auditions so I am immune to success and failure. I also believe that success is a very lousy teacher. You learn a lot from your failures. Apart from that, you learn a lot from every film. Your craft just improves with every film and I am just glad I did all those films. It was the curse of the first benchmark film — the debut film was so big that it reached a cult status. It was a film made with Rs 4 crores and it reached Rs 50 crores. That’s why I think the expectations were so high! But after the last film (Hawaizaada), I think the expectations weren’t there at all! (Laughs)

Ever have self-doubt in the period that your films weren’t doing well?
Till the time your craft is being appreciated, there can’t be any self-doubt. You can doubt your decisions for sure but you cannot doubt your craft. I have been doing this — music and theatre since childhood. So there was no self-doubt. I always believed in myself.

Your choices in terms of films have been slightly off-beat. Is it a conscious decision?
I don’t know! Bewakoofiyaan was a conventional rom-com but apart from that, every film was unconventional. Sometimes, you get close to the character and choose scripts with roles that are similar to you in real life as well. Dum Laga Ke Haisha is also different as I had to speak a language I didn’t really know. There is this guy Mahesh in the film who was sent to Gujarat so I used to just eat with him, converse with him, that is how I picked up the accent. I can grasp languages easily.

You think this is one movie that has made you Ayushmann Khurrana beyond Vicky Donor because until now, VD was the only film that did really well.
Of course. Definitely and thank God for that. Nautanki Saala was a hit but the perception was that it didn’t do well. My father thinks this is bigger than Vicky Donor and my mother thinks I have surpassed my debut film as well. I have grown a lot in this film for sure. It is also progressive like my debut film was, though in its own way. It speaks about woman emancipation. It is also about a guy who is very complex. As a nation, we have not really spoken about male emancipation. And this film talks about it.

How do you manage to juggle both singing and acting?
I used to unwind with music when I was anchoring on television but now it has become a part of my profession. If your passion is your profession, nothing can beat that. You are very lucky and fortunate that whatever comes naturally to you, you are doing it to earn a living. Not many people have the liberty of saying that. Every person who is an actor or an artist, is following that passion and you are getting paid to follow that, then you are just lucky.

Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 22, 2014)

"O boy, it's a baby girl! There's a birth of a father again," Ayushmann Khurrana whooped when on Monday his wife Tahira delivered their second bundle of joy. The couple's son, Virajveer, was born in 2012.

The actor admitted that he is proud to be the first one from his '99 batch at Chandigarh's St. John's High School to get married. "I'm also the youngest father. It's a feat to be a parent in your 20s," he quipped. "I learnt humility from my mother and chivalry from my wife. Now I will become compassionate because of my daughter."

A few days ago, speaking to Mirror, Ayushmann who had to sell his apartment after his help hanged himself there, had refuted rumours about not having a home in Mumbai anymore, saying, "We have bought a new place but I've hardly been in Mumbai so my wife has been mostly staying in Chandigarh. It's more practical because both our families are there and can help her with our son."

There was no mention of the fact that Tahira was in the last stages of pregnancy then. Fiercely protective about his private life, Ayushmann quickly shifted focus to Haridwar and Rishkiesh where he'd been shooting. "Haridwar is more religious while Rishikesh is spiritual. I'd love to settle down in Rishikesh, open a radio station and play music. I love its old-world charm," he said dreamily.

Interestingly, Ayushmann is working on three period films this year. Dum Laga Ke Haisha is set in the '90s, Shoojit Sircar's football film with John Abraham unfolds in 1911 and Bombay Fairytale is the biopic of Shivkar Bapuji Talpade who built and flew India's first unmanned aircraft in 1896, eight years before the Wright brothers' famous flight. "I love nostalgia," he admitted, remembering his first flight at 16 to Bangalore for a medical entrance exam by the national carrier. "There were 60 odd students who got on from Delhi and 50 per cent of us were first-time fliers. We all started clapping when the plane took off and after that it was party time. I'm looking forward to flying Bapuji's Marutsakha in the next schedule of Bombay Fairytale." 

Ayushmann's own flight has been rocked by a Bewakoofiyan and buzz is that post the flop he has slashed his price and is re-thinking his career? "I haven't signed any films after this so there's no question of a price hike or a slash," he pointed out. "I have minimal expectations from life and whatever I've got so far is more than enough. 1911 is the only new film I have on hand. Even Hamara Bajaj is on hold because Shoojit has got busy with Pikoo and 1911"

And what about Milan Talkies in which he had reportedly replaced Imran Khan? "Talks were on but there has been no confirmation. I'd love to work with Tigmanshu (Dhulia) but I don't know what's happening with the film. I've been quite busy with Dum Laga Ke Haisha for a while now," he said.

The rom-com revolves around an odd-couple-a video parlour owner and his intelligent, overweight wife. Ayushmann admits that his wife Tahira has often given him complexes. "I was a scrawny 50 kgs when I was in the 11th standard and she was the most beautiful girl in class who came to college in a car while I rode a bicycle. I always had a crush on her but never expected her to reciprocate," he confessed. Today the complexes are long gone and the man, woman and their two bundles of joy are a happy family.  

WILL THE RECESSION-BASED ROMCOM IMPRESS VIEWERS?

Ayushmann Khurrana, who made a smashing debut as actor and singer with Vicky Donor (2012) is back with his third film – Bewakoofiyaan. Produced by Yash Raj Films and directed by Nupur Asthana (who previously made the much loved Mujhse Fraaandship Karoge), the film also stars Sonam Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor. The film is a slice-of-life drama of a marketing executive in an airline company who loses his job during recession at a time when his girlfriend has just introduced him to her father. The trailer is decent and nothing great and same goes for songs. Ayushmann-Sonam look great together though. Sonam’s bikini avatar for the first time did grab eyeballs. The film however looks fresh and most importantly, relatable and is just 119 minutes long.

What goes against the film is the buzz is moderate. It might attract viewers, if public reaction is positive. The film has several advantages too. It’s the solo release and from last week’s three releases, only Queen would give a tough competition. Secondly, the costs of the film are reasonable. Thirdly, there’s a holiday on Monday March 17th (on account of Holi). Hence, Bewakoofiyaan will have a four-day weekend and this can help the film economically.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE BEWAKOOFIYAAN AND WHY? DO LET ME KNOW!
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QUEEN IS A SUCCESS!

That Queen would be an entertaining flick was evident from the promos itself. But the response from audiences has been pleasantly surprising. I have not come across a single person who hasn't liked it! In fact, people haven’t just liked, they have loved it! The film is a simple story, told in a simple fashion and is laced with real characters and real situations. That’s precisely the reason why Queen works big time. And not to forget, Kangana Ranaut delivers what many consider one of the best performances ever!

It’s sad when several well-made films don’t excel at the box office. Queen thankfully is proving to be an exception. It had a poor start but dramatically picked up from Day 2. It didn’t fell in the weekdays – a sign that audiences have accepted the film.

If the film sustains in Week 2, it’ll prove to be a Hit. And that surely would be great!

Subhash K Jha (DNA; March 12, 2014)

You’d think that Sonam Kapoor is only carrying forward the illustrious Yash Raj legacy (Esha Deol in Dhoom, Bipasha Basu in Dhoom 2, Kareena in Tashan) by getting into a bikini for Bewakoofiyaan. But Sonam springs a saucy surprise by saying the bikini was her idea.

“It wasn’t the producer Aditya Chopra or the director Nupur Asthana’s idea that I wear a bikini. In fact, the director suggested a one-piece bathing costume. But I thought a bikini was fine. If you see the trailer there are two young people going for swim. It’s perfectly natural for the girl to be in a bikini. It’s not Halle Berry in a James Bond film or Bipasha Basu in Dhoom making a splash. The bikini blends naturally into the scene. And I am very happy to be wearing one. Having a female director around helped. But I wasn’t really tense about wearing a bikini.”

Sonam’s father Anil Kapoor has apparently said that Sonam’s bikini shot would get Bewakoofiyaan a good opening. She refutes any such statement from her father. “My father never said that. All that I said at a press meet was that my father feels the film would get a good opening.”

The actress is very happy to have done a frothy feel-happy film like this after doing too many intense ones like Saawariya, Delhi 6, Mausam, Raanjhanaa and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. This romcom helped her relax. “I needed to unwind, just have fun doing a role. It was chicken soup for my soul. I have two heroine-centric films — Khubsoorat and Dolly Ki Doli — lined up. Before I went into these films where I had to shoulder the film’s weight, I needed to do something where both the leads had equal responsibility to share. Bewakoofiyaan was liberating.”

Subhash K Jha (DNA; March 11, 2014)

Ayushmann Khurrana will be playing a 19th century Maharashtrian scientist Shivkar Bapuji Talpade in Vibhu Puri’s Bambai Fairytale. Since it is a period film, the actor says, “It’s a different language and a different universe. So far I’ve only been playing variations of myself. But with this film I started living in the past.”

The boy from Chandigarh, who is living in Mumbai for the last five years, admits, “The first thing that I did when I landed in Mumbai was to buy myself a book on how to speak Marathi. By now I can understand Marathi, but not speak the language. All my staff members are Marathi. That helps me a lot in getting the character and accent right in Bambai Fairytale. Mercifully, this is a Hindi film with Marathi here and there.”

He confesses that before this role came to him, he hadn’t ever heard of Shivkar Talpade. “Even when I Googled, I hardly got any information on him. So I had to kind of build the character from scratch. I just had one bleached picture of his. But we’ve changed his looks. Besides being a scientist, Shivkar was also charmer. That part came easily to me (laughs). He is as endearing as a little child. The character has a graph. My hair is completely different for the role. I had to hide my look from the press photographers,” he says.

Was it tough playing the 21st century dude in Bewakoofiyaan and the 19th century scientist in Bambai Fairytale at the same time? “As an actor it is very important for me to switch on and off. So I didn’t go into any intense preparation. But when I was shooting for Bambai Fairytale in a place called Gondal in Gujarat, I’d take bucket baths just to get the feel of the era. We were staying in a palace constructed in 1880. I had this huge room with a huge bathroom where I took bucket baths with Hamam soap... just for the retro feel. That was the oldest soap available.”

Bharati Dubey (MID-DAY; February 22, 2014)

Promos of Ayushmann Khurrana’s upcoming film, Bewakoofiyaan, show him as an official with an airline company who loses his job due to retrenchment. Sources are now linking this plot to a real- life situation that took place some years ago. It seems that Ayushmann’s character is inspired by the life of one of the scores of employees of Kingfisher Airlines who were fired some years ago. The film is apparently centred around this character and the problems he faced post his loss of job.

One of the promos currently on air hints that the film touches upon all that happened to the employees after they were thrown out of their jobs by the airline. A source close to the unit says, “Kingfisher’s retrenchment saw thousands of people lose their jobs. This was followed by widespread protests across India. Even in the film, there’s a scene where a lot of employees are shown protesting and going on hunger strikes.”

When contacted, a spokesperson for the film confirmed that the film’s character derives inspiration from real- life. “Ayushmann Khurrana's character works in an airline office and he then loses his job,” says the spokesperson.