Hollywood films have emerged handsome winners in 2025 outshining mainstream Bollywood films in the Indian box office. And the big hitters have been F1: The Movie, Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning, Jurassic World: Rebirth and the latest, The Conjuring: The Last Rites.

Interestingly, in this smooth ride of Hollywood films in 2025, The US-based Warner Bros. Pictures saw its market share in the India collection jump two times in 2025.

“The right balance of mid-and-small and big films across diverse genres has worked for us,” said Denzil Dias, VP and managing director, India Theatrical, Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of Warner Bros. Pictures.

Till date, in 2025, Hollywood films have collected more than Rs 862 crore in India, half of that for Warner Bros. movies, accounting for 24% in 2024.

“We want to build an audience base. They will come for blockbuster films. But we also want mid-and-small-budget to work in theatres,” said Dias of Warner Bros. Discovery.

Dias stressed that after the pandemic audiences have become selective in their theatrical outings, making filmmaking far more serious and responsible affair. “But the silver lining is that audiences are willing to pay a premium price to watch good films in theatres,” he added.

In 2025, Warner Bros. Pictures films such as F1: The Movie, Final Destination Bloodlines, Superman, Weapons, A Minecraft Movie, Dune: Part Two, Sinners and The Conjuring: Last Rites have performed noticeably well in India, taking the cumulative collection of its films to Rs 432 crore till date.

“For us, film distribution and marketing are not just about releasing films in the right theatres and getting the right number of shows. It is also about releasing films in the right language,” explained Dias. 

“We were clear about releasing Jurassic World: Rebirth in dubbed Hindi version. Today, 40% of our collection in India came from the Hindi dubbed version of the film,” he shared. Universal Pictures, which distributed Jurassic World: Rebirth, has a tie-up with Warner Bros. Picture to distribute films in India.

Two things have worked well for Warner Bros. Pictures. The studio has taken bold calls by backing mid-and-small originals such as Weapons and Companion, which paid off. Another aspect is handling of its franchise films.

“Ultimately only storytelling works and audiences smell a good film promptly. We have nurtured our franchise films. We identified filmmakers who were passionate about our franchise films. So, they made these films like a fan, which worked for these films,” Dias said.

In India, Warner Bros. Pictures has been collaborating with local influencers to review their films in Hindi which helped market their films well and reach a wide audience.

“We must understand what the audience wants. We sensed an opportunity in audiences’ resonance with games-related IPs. That is how the idea of the Minecraft movie germinated,” pointed Dias.

In the coming months, the studio has two distinct releases: One Battle After Another and Bugonia. “Today, even a small film like Bugonia can be an event film if it brings like-minded people into theatres,” explained Dias.

Dias is quite optimistic about the performance of Hollywood films in India in the coming months. “India is a movie-loving country. This is a big positive. It is about being authentic by creating right awareness and good stories. Audiences largely reward such an authentic approach,” he said. 

WILL SON OF SARDAAR 2, DHADAK 2 CONTINUE THE MOMENTUM AT THE BOX OFFICE?

The month of July was maybe the best one for the industry in a long time. Every week, at least one film managed to be a success at the box office, across languages. On July 4, Metro…In Dino started on a slow note but then picked up and held steadily. Jurassic World: Rebirth was a hit from day 1 and will cross the Rs. 100 crore mark. A week later, Superman also managed to do well. On July 18, Saiyaara opened with a bang and is now all set to be a Rs. 350 crore grosser, shocking one and all. Not much was expected from Mahavatar Narsimha, but it showed a historic trend. After opening at just Rs. 1.45 crores, it collected Rs. 3.50 crores on Saturday and a huge Rs. 6.85 crores. On Tuesday, thanks to the discounted ticket offer, it earned Rs. 5.50 crores. At this rate, it’ll have first week collections of around Rs. 28-29 crores and can hit the Rs. 50 crore mark or even more in its lifetime.

Meanwhile, two significant films will be out tomorrow, August 1. Son Of Sardaar 2 was all set to be out on July 25, but was postponed on July 19 due to the unstoppable Saiyaara wave. The decision was a good one, as Son Of Sardaar 2 would have faced problems in getting screens.

The comic caper stars Ajay Devgn, Mrunal Thakur, Ravi Kishan, Neeru Bajwa, Deepak Dobriyal, Kubbra Sait, Chunky Panday, Sharat Saxena, Vindu Dara Singh, Roshni Walia, Sanjay Mishra, Ashwini Kalsekar and the late Mukul Dev. From the trailers, it looks like a fun entertainer with the song 'Pehla Tu Duja Tu' becoming a rage, especially its unusual dance step.

However, the buzz for the film is limited. It’ll open at around Rs. 7-8 crores and might have an outside chance of crossing the Rs. 10 crore mark. A good word of mouth will help in better collections on Saturday and Sunday.

Dhadak 2, meanwhile, is backed by Karan Johar and is a remake of the 2018 acclaimed Tamil film, Pariyerum Perumal. It stars Siddhant Chaturvedi and Triptii Dimri and was in the news as it faced issues over its censor process. The Central Board of Film Certification finally passed the film in May but with several cuts. The trailer is decent but for a film like this, songs need to be chartbusters, which hasn’t happened here.

Dhadak 2 should open around Rs. 4-5 crores. Both films have a discount offer and that would help in a push in the footfalls.

Superman starts all of a sudden; no introduction of characters and no conventional understanding of the conflict is provided. It is a bit unsettling and in some scenes thereafter, where some exciting moments are simply mentioned and not shown, one does wish the makers had not opted for this route. However, soon the plot becomes crystal clear and also the characters get well-defined. The first half is lengthy and has a lot of nail-biting and funny moments. The climax is lengthy and is clapworthy. What's striking is that it's a film of today. It has a geopolitical backdrop and makes a huge comment on a real-life conflict. It also touches upon social media. On the flipside, as aforementioned, the beginning is not that impressive. The action gets too disturbing in some places. Lastly, the mid-credit and post-credit scenes are random and disappointing. David Corenswet, however, does full justice to the role despite Henry Cavill's portrayal being etched in our minds. Rachel Brosnahan is exceptional and her character will be loved. Nicholas Hoult is too good as the villain. Edi Gathegi (Mister Terrific) is the surprise of the film and its second hero. Skyler Gisondo (Jimmy Oslen), Sara Sampaio (Eve) and María Gabriela de Faría (The Engineer) leave a tremendous mark. Zlatko Burić (Boravian President) is over the top but it works for his character. Anthony Carrigan (Rex/Metamorpho), Nathan Fillion (Green Lantern) and Isabela Merced (Hawkgirl) do well but get limited scope. All in all, Superman fulfills all expectations. Don't miss!

My rating - **** out of 5!

The last three weeks have been great for the film industry. It all started with Sitaare Zameen Par working at the box office. The following week, F1: The Movie emerged as a surprise hit. Maa underperformed but did pull in a significant audience. Last week's Jurassic World: Rebirth, as expected, scored a sixer. Metro...In Dino had a slow opening but the way it has held on weekdays has been a pleasant surprise.

This week, three major films are up for release, with Superman being the biggest of them. It's not as big a series in India but nevertheless, the character is popular and known among the Indian population. Also, the Western reviews have been very positive. The bookings in India have been encouraging. It'll open less than Jurassic World: Rebirth and more than F1: The Movie. In other words, an opening of Rs. 7-8 crores is expected. If the word of mouth is strong, it can have a weekend of Rs. 25 crores.

Maalik stars Rajkummar Rao in a never-before-seen action avatar. His look has been appreciated but the film has not been able to generate excitement. However, since it's in the massy zone, it'll get a lot of theatres in B and C centres. The makers have provided a discount of Rs. 100 and that should attract more people than expected. It should open at Rs. 2.50-3 crores.

Lastly, Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan stars Vikrant Massey and marks the debut of Shanaya Kapoor. The film looks like a clean love story and rests on an interesting idea. However, though the awareness is there, the buzz is very limited. It is also facing show-sharing issues since there are so many exciting releases around. Even Maalik has gone through this issue.

Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan will open at around Rs. 1-2 crores and will have to have a great word of mouth to jump big time.

It’s been ten years but the memories of those days are still fresh. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi had released in cinemas and the perception was that the film has not worked among the audiences and that it was bound to fail in the days to come. Moreover, the monstrous biggie Ghajini was to release two weeks later and many felt the film would crash even before the Aamir Khan starrer would be out. On top of that, the ghastly 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai happened just two weeks before its release. Again, the belief was that the mood in the country was sombre and that audiences are not ready to go out in cinemas.

In a few days however, the scenario became clear. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi had a great weekend and held very well in the weekdays! And the word of mouth was extremely positive which is why the great box office performance. The release of Ghajini definitely affected the film a bit but it went on to do a business of approx. Rs. 85 crore, which was a huge number then.

The skeptics also had issues with the low promotional strategy adopted by the makers, Yash Raj Films. It however worked very well in the favour. During Diwali period (October 2008), the first look was revealed. In cinema halls, lenticular posters were put up. When viewed from one side, it showed a scared, bespectacled Shah Rukh Khan dancing and posing with the then newbie Anushka Sharma, dressed in Indian attire. View it from another angle and you see SRK now a confident, ‘cool’ chap holding a smiling Anushka, both now dressed in western clothes. The trailer was unveiled on November 14, with the release of Dostana and it did nothing to tell the viewers about the story! Everyone was wondering that why does Shah Rukh Khan have two diametrically different avatars in the film? Is there a double role involved? Or split personality? Or does the film have a flashback sequence and hence the two looks, a la Kuch Kuch Hota Hai?

It’s only when the film was released that the mystery was unveiled. Most films end with the hero and heroine getting hitched. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi however commenced showing them tying the knot and beginning their married life. But sadly, the union of Surinder Sahni (SRK) and Taani (Anushka Sharma) is lifeless as the latter doesn’t love him at all and has made it clear to him. The shy and naive Sahni on the other hand loves her to death and is unable to say so. The story actually moves when a few days later, Taani joins a dance school and Suri goes there after having a makeover just to see her having a good time. Interestingly, he too is compelled to enrol and Taani is made his dancing partner.

What happens next is why many thought that the film may not work. Suri is moustachioed, mild-mannered and soft-spoken. But after his makeover, he pretends to be loud, wannabe and cool. He wears flashy clothes and calls himself Raj and addresses his wife as Taani Partner. And yes, the mooch is gone! Shockingly, Taani fails to recognize him! Not once does it cross her mind that her dancing partner’s facial features and height is very similar to that of her hubby.

A section of moviegoers were aghast with such a plot. Surprisingly, the film worked big time with the audiences. Yes, it did look somewhat difficult to digest but the film worked very well on an emotional level. To give credit to the makers, they did try their best to ensure Raj doesn’t have an inch of Suri in him. From hairstyle to way of talking to clothes to the flirtatious nature, Raj was the exact opposite. So it was entirely unconvincing that Taani failed to recognize the man she married.

Would Aditya Chopra make a similar film in today’s times? Probably not. The culture of trolling and social media has reached epic proportions. In 2018, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi would have been criticized left, right and centre on Twitter by a section of media and high-nosed netizens. Although less than 1% of people are on the microblogging website, it still scares the makers a lot. And hence, for a film like Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi that is made for a pan-India audience, such criticism would have hardly affected. Some of the criticism would also be unfair since the same social media population wouldn’t have minded Lois Lane not realizing that Clark Kent is Superman but that’s a different topic!

Yet, the fear of social media is too high and somewhere, the conviction that was there at one point is withering away. Karan Johar, in his autobiography ‘An Unsuitable Boy’, looks back at his first directorial venture, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which released ten years before Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, and also starred SRK along with Kajol and Rani Mukerji. He himself picks up flaws in the film in a chapter in the book! He says, “Shah Rukh says, ‘Ek hi baar jeete hai, ek hi baar pyaar hota hai.’ But he got married again, he fell in love again, so why was he saying these things? It didn’t make sense.” He then adds, “Rani is writing eight letters to her daughter (to be given to her on each of her birthday). What did she write in the first three letters? Gagagoogoo?! And how did she know (that eight years hence), Kajol was going to be free and available (for marriage with SRK)?” Karan Johar then observes, “It was just conviction. I’m envious of the conviction I had in 1997 when I wrote (Kuch Kuch Hota Hai) because today, that conviction has got too logical. Today, you think, oh my god, log kya kahenge, critics kya kahenge. But we never cared about all these things then, we were like, Hindi picture hai, banao!”

Critics of this argument would reason that times have however changed and what worked then back won’t work today. But Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi worked so well, didn’t it? Last year, didn’t the ‘catapult’ scene of Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (pictured below) worked, as also the film, despite the heavy slamming it got on social media? There are many such instances. There’s no formula honestly speaking. However, if the film is relatable, rooted and touches viewers emotionally, a few blemishes and goofs here and there are fine. In Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, so many people saw themselves in the lead characters – women trapped in loveless marriages, men who don’t know how to profess their love to their wife whom they love a lot, ‘macho men’ who want to build muscles to impress girls and so on. And the way the characters are sketched and the manner in which the film flowed was loved. And if the climax has a punch, the film most probably is a winner. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi was no exception. It’s climax – when Taani finds out about the truth during the dancing competition finale – is brilliant to say the least! When viewers are getting so much in return, they were able to forgive the ‘apne-pati-ko-pehchaan-nahi-paayi’ bit!

It’s surprising to see how Aditya Chopra managed to have this conviction then. It’s high time our makers learn from the success of this film and take a bit of cinematic liberty. If it’s a big Hindi entertainer, it’s okay to have cinematic liberties provided you provide viewers with entertainment and moments that they can take home. The downside sadly is that sometimes, the makers get carried away and the result is a film that’s miles away from any sort of reality. That’s also not right and a balance is required. Here’s hoping this happens soon and the good, old days of quintessential, big-budget, typical Hindi movies are back!

Prateek Sur (DNA; February 7, 2015)

Roop Kumar Rathod, who is set to release his next album Zikr Tera, along with wife Sunali is upset with the state of the Bollywood music industry these days. He has a problem with the lyrics of Arjun Kapoor’s last release Tevar’s Superman song. Roop says, “Now-a-days songs have just reduced to being abuses. I was listening to a song a few days ago and it had lyrics which said kar doon maa behn, superman, Salman ka fan... I was shocked and appalled at such lyrics in a song, which will be heard and hummed by millions. Small children will listen to such songs and keep singing it all day long. If they listen to such language, they will definitely use them in real life and that would be really bad.”

The music composer duo discusses Salman Khan, Bollywood remixes and their unique catchphrases
Kasmin Fernandes (BOMBAY TIMES; December 23, 2014)

Eepsita Guha (BOMBAY TIMES; December 22, 2014)

Arjun Kapoor on pressures about being an actor, dressing up, acting in his first home production and being one of few stars from the new generation who has been linked with all his co-stars
Harshada Rege (DNA; December 9, 2014)


Usually, industry kids make their debut with a home production, but you are already pretty established. Is the pressure different from what it would have been if this was your debut film?
When you do a film, you don’t think like that. When you’re shooting, it’s only about getting the work done that day. You are going day-by-day, and not thinking of the bigger picture. You are only trying to make the work happen, and that goes for every film, even if it isn’t a home production. I would consider YRF as much my home production, so I put in the same amount of effort. The excitement, the nervousness… all those emotions are the same, but now that I sit down and talk to people there’s that realisation that there is certain perception that comes with working in a home production, and I am very okay with that baggage. I am very proud of my home production, I am very proud of my father and I want the film to do very well.

Was it easier then to work in a home production?
No, because there are a lot more emotions off-camera. You feel lots of things… I had my father on the sets for the very first time. I mean, he has always seen my films before they release, but that’s the final product. He got to see my process as an actor for the very first time and that’s a different feeling. Waking up on an outdoor and knowing your dad’s staying in the next room, you can meet him before you go… I have not had that all my life... I mean for as long as I can remember. It’s always been that you meet him at some point in the day or talk to him over the phone, but to wake up in the morning and share a meal with him or to meet him on the set for lunch, those are things I have not experienced before. So there were those emotions.

Looking back, any regrets it wasn’t your first film?
I didn’t do my first film with the home banner because I wanted to be worth something so that my dad could make his kind of film. But on the sets, I like to be his reality check, his mirror. When we were shooting for the Superman song. We’d wake up early in the morning and wait for the fog to clear. Then we would keep shooting till we could. The song was scheduled for five days, but we finished it in four, so on the fifth day we didn’t know what to do. I told Remo (D’Souza), let’s just shoot the song everywhere once again. In the trailer, you see so many places because we were pushing the unit and we got better output. But there was no pressure, ki yaar kya hoga, because nobody can control the fate of the film. But I am happy that I have worked with dad at this point. Maybe if it was my first film, I wouldn’t have been able to handle it. Having this little experience of two years keeps me sane and calm and doesn’t let me feel the burden of pressure.

You’ve always been close to Salman Khan. The Superman song’s an ode to him…
I was quite surprised when I heard the song because I never thought Amit, our director, will get such a commercial hook line for the song. I thought he would have that montage kind of a song, establishing Agra ka character. Remember that song, Dhakka Laga Buka in Yuva? This song was supposed to be like that…a journey in the alleys of Agra. But suddenly they found this hook and they realised that it works very well with my character Pintu. He genuinely believes he is a superhero because he helps people all the time, and he is a fan of Salman in the film, so it made sense. I told him to be prepared because it will never be Pintu’s song, it will be Arjun’s song for Salman. Hum kitne baar bhi bol de key eh Pintu ke liye likha hai, but people are going to say nahi yeh Arjun ne Salman ke liye kiya hai. It came from an organic-ness in the film and then you realise it fits with the film’s perception too, and the fact that I am doing it. So, two plus two became four in a very nice way. It wasn’t manipulated. I loved it and I was looking forward to doing a song where I get to dance after Chokra Jawaan.

Yes, that was the first time you showcased your dancing skills.
Chokra jawaan was an acid test to prove to Aditya Chopra that I could dance. He thought I had two left feet — Everyone at Yash Raj ­­because of my body structure and by body language — thought I was a very laidback, lazy guy with two left feet. For Chokra jawaan, I rehearsed for five days then I performed for Adi in the studio in the rehearsal hall for five-and-a-half minutes like a stage show. And then Adi said, ‘Okay you can do it’. He had said that if I hadn't proved to him then they would have shot the song differently. With Gauahar dancing and me just watching it. But I refused to accept it, and wanted to prove myself. 2 States had little dancing, Gunday was more free styling and less dancing. But with the Tevar song, I can say people haven’t seen me dancing like this.

Do you enjoy dancing or is it something you do like a job?
I love dancing. I know that I am not the best dancer, but I enjoy dancing. I think it shows on your face when you like dancing. We have grown up seeing people like Govinda and Madhuri Dixit who love dancing. We loved them not just because of the way they dance, but also because they could make you want to dance. I am that kind of person, when I see someone dancing well I feel like dancing. But when someone complicates it, I get scared. As long as I am comfortable with it, I enjoy it. Superman was me finding my comfort level again. There’s another song which you will see later in which I have danced again…kyunki producer papa hain toh maine pura advantage liya hai (laughs).

Tevar is a solo hero film. Apart from Gunday, most of your movies have been solo hero projects. Is it a conscious thing?
I have never perceived it that way. I think from my generation, I am one of the few actors to have done so many ensemble movies. Finding Fanny, I knew was truly one and I really enjoyed it. In Aurangzeb, Prithvi had an amazing role. 2 States is also an ensemble, without Amrita Singh and Ronit Roy that film is nothing. I have never seen it that way. In Tevar too, both Sonakshi Sinha and Manoj Bajpayee have important roles. But yes, I love doing ensemble movies. Finding Fanny was selfishly a wholesome experience for me because I got to work with Naseer, Pankaj, Dimple m’am and Deepika, and all in the same frame at the same time. It was really good fun. I would love to do a two hero-three hero film as long as it gives me something to bite into like Fanny did. In Gunday, I knew both the roles are equally fleshed out. We could’ve switched our roles and still got equal credit for it. I would love to do a movie like Ocean’s 11, but nobody is going to make it here. If I was to do that movie, I would love to do Matt Damon’s role. I would love to see more cooler, senior actors play George Clooney and Brad Pitt. In Matt Damon’s role I would observe them and blend in.

Not many upcoming actors would want to blend in; wouldn’t you want to stand out?
It’s about balancing. If I do three Tevar’s in a year, it’s great to do an Ocean’s 11. I chose to do a Finding Fanny because I knew I was going to be doing an Okkadu remake after it. That much sensibility you have to garner, ke okay you want to do this and that also for yourself. It might change in one year, you might meet me and I might say ‘Mujhe toh sirf solo hero hi karni hai’, but at this point I am open to anything.

You haven’t really done any bubble gum romance…
I’d love to do an urban romcom, but I think jab tak main daadhi shave nahi karungga tab tak mujhe koi aisa offer nahi dega.

Your female fan following sure increased after 2 States…
I sensed that change in women after 2 States, especially the younger generation. Also children, who were scared of me. I remember I was travelling for an ad shoot and a lady came up to me in hotel lobby, and said that her seven-eight year old son watches Gunday every night while eating his dinner. And I was really excited because I have done stuff like that. I used to watch Ram Lakhan while having dinner. So I went to meet him. When he saw me, he kept saying ‘Bala, Bala’. His expressions went from being taken aback to wailing loudly. He spent more than hour in the lobby of that hotel hiding from me. That’s when I thought ki yeh badlana padega.

The audience accepted you…
One thing I’ve realised is that you can’t plan all these things. I didn’t know where I was going to be after two years when Ishqzaade released. Too many factors are at play — luck, destiny, circumstances, a good director and most importantly, acceptance from the audience. You can’t plan that. You can work really hard, look your best, but if they don’t want to see you, then they don’t want to see you. And sometimes they want to see you no matter what. There’s something the audience catches and latches on to. I always wonder how it happened so quickly with Ishaqzaade. I always thought I will have to work slow and steady to get to a scenario where I can do a movie like Tevar. It’s a full-on commercial, entertaining film, which nobody from my generation has really attempted. People have done it in probably a two-hero set up like Gunday, but nobody from my generation has done a solo, typical Hindi film. If I can do it in two years, and create some buzz that will have people intrigued to go and see the film after the trailer then that’s a good sign. It means that there’s some level of acceptance from the audience.

You said that Aditya Chopra asked you to concentrate on your acting rather than your looks, but today you are constantly under the scanner for how you dress or look. Comment.
Kabhi Kabhi lagta ki log itna kyun notice karte hain. Rhea (Kapoor) is doing my styling now. But in my personal life, I can’t think so much about these things. If I had it my way, I’d wear my favourite yellow shorts and any shirt that was lying around while stepping out. But now you realise that there’s an excitement among people to know how you are, what you are, and about your personal life. That has happened due to the success of the films. But I still can’t be dressing up and think so much. If I am growing out with my hair now, I am going to be have a month of bad hair days. But I’m okay with it. You should realise that people may notice now and comment on it, but when you look fine after a month they will forget that. During Gunday, I had a quiff, which can look strange with a suit. People would say iske paas baal katne ke paise nahi hai. But how many people can I explain it to that I am doing it for a movie? Something looks good on camera, but it may not be appealing off it. Like in Tevar, I knew I wanted to look broad, because if I am beating up 10 people, I should look like someone who can pull it off. I am anyway broad, I am a kabbadi player, so I thought let me use that to my advantage and play it to the gallery. But if I am looking like that while promoting 2 States obviously I don’t look like I did in that film because I am shooting this one. I can’t help it. You can’t be worried and bogged down by who is saying what about you all the time.

You were linked to Sonakshi during Tevar and to Alia in 2 States. Why does that keep happening with you?
It’s not something that I want. It just happens. Just yesterday, I was telling someone that 22 is now 36, it’s not even 22 now. Sonakshi is my neighbour. I have known her since school days, we are acquaintances and friendly for many years. We have always met at parties and would hang around. This is the first time I’ve worked with her. And when you work with someone you get to know them better. Either you get along with them or you realise that this person cannot become a friend. In her case, I really got along with her and that just made it easy for us to be more than just social friends because we know each other’s friends too. We have stepped out for 10 films, but it’s just we have been snapped two-three times. And you can’t explain it to everyone that we had eight other people with us. It’s okay, it’s a small price to pay. The link-ups cannot be changed.

Does that make things awkward?
Not between her and me. The one thing I don’t appreciate is that sometimes people jump to the conclusion that these people are doing it for the film’s publicity.

Don’t you have people telling you to ignore it because it will benefit the movie?
Yes, I have been told that also. But I don’t agree with it. I don’t think that audiences are that stupid to go watch a movie because of a link-up story. Maybe people would come out of curiousity about the actors for the first day, but after that it’s about the film and how good it is. At least, I don’t come from that school of thought that believes you need to do all this to make your movie work. That’s the only thing that irks me a little…people shouldn’t assume that we are doing it for publicity.

There was a lot of speculation about your absence at Arpita’s wedding considering you are very close to Salman.
That’s my equation with Salman and the family…there’s nothing to speculate. I think there were far more interesting things happening like Shah Rukh and Salman bhai meeting.

Do you keep a tab on your competitors?
I am aware of the goings-on because I’ve grown up in the industry. The way people discuss things at their dinner table, this is normal conversation for us. We’d probably know if a movie is being made before many people would because we are a part of this profession. It’s not that we are dying to know, it’s just a part of our lives. It’s very matter-of-fact. I don’t need to keep a track because it automatically comes to me.

Ranveer and you…
Hum shaadi karne wale hain jis din rules badal jaayenge.

What happens to Deepika?
Deepika who? There’s only Ranveer and me (laughs).

The camaraderie obviously goes beyond just movies, how does that work when you are both competitors?
There’s something nice Akshay Kumar once said, “We are not horses who are in a race. We are not pitting against one another.” The media does that so that they can compare who they like better. But liking someone is completely subjective. There’s enough work for all of us to do…. If these factors start affecting your personal life, you’ll never be happy. You have to look beyond them.

One hasn’t seen this kind of bonding in the older generation right at the beginning of their career. You guys hang out together, party together…that’s very unique to your generation....
Maybe that’s because we all know each other before we joined the industry. Ranveer and I knew each other before we’ve became what we have become today. I know Varun (Dhawan). I knew Sid before his Student Of The Year and my Ishaqzaade released. But just because we’ve started doing well, doesn’t mean we start behaving differently with each other. Why would you change your friendships? I am genuinely very fond of the guy (Ranveer). I can be very honest with him about his films and he is equally honest about my work. He saw 2 States and he called me, I spoke to him about Ram-Leela. After watching Finding Fanny, he kept telling me, you are going to Hollywood. I told him that I can’t go to Hollywood, Anil Kapoor is already there.

Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; November 13, 2014)