Year 2020 saw Vaani Kapoor wrapping up not one, but two films. After flying down to Glasgow, Akshay Kumar for company, for a start-to-finish shoot of Bell Bottom, Vaani — who had a massive blockbuster in the form of War in 2019 — has also smoothly wrapped up Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui,
co-starring Ayushmann Khurrana.

Congratulations for wrapping up two films in a year when the world came to a halt...

I am very happy and grateful for that... genuinely. I just got lucky I guess.... I kept praying, while shooting both films, that everyone should be safe and healthy and that work gets completed smoothly. If just one person contracts Covid, then the whole shoot has to be halted and that can prove to be very expensive for the producers, as well as for creative people who are working in a flow... you don’t want the rhythm to break. I am so happy that both the productions were very vigilant and cautious with their safety measures and that they were successful in creating these bubbles for us so that we could work peacefully. I am happy I finished two films and I am now waiting for the theatres to open properly. Yes, individually for me it’s been a fruitful time, and in times like these, I have been lucky to get work.

Bell Bottom was the first film in the world to go on the floors in the middle of the pandemic, with no reference points in terms of how things should be done. You must have been apprehensive...

Initially, I was. I kept wondering, ‘Oh, how will it go? Is it going to be safe?’ I kept thinking about all the basic, generic stuff that one tends to think of in a situation like this. If you get stuck in a different country, then I guess you just get stuck there... I don’t know how it works. But the entire credit goes to the producers (Nikkhil Advani and Jackky Bhagnani) of Bell Bottom who put all of us under quarantine, made us undergo regular tests and we were all in a bubble... we weren’t meeting anyone outside that bubble. We led very restricted lives during shoot. And being in Glasgow, the place was pretty spaced out and the population isn’t as much as it is back here.

And then you went straight into Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui and wrapped that up in 48 days...

I think one can make any place safe if one really wants to. There were some actors on this film who came in only for a couple of days, but then again, everyone was being tested regularly. Individually, we were all responsible, but the major responsibility lay with the producers (Bhushan Kumar and Pragya Kapoor) and they did a great job. Again, Chandigarh is very spaced out, and the numbers aren’t as high as in many other cities in the country. We were blessed enough to not have anyone fall sick.

Professionally, you have been very busy, but what have the personal takeaways from 2020 been like?

I think we all have learnt to adapt. As humans, we are anyway either built to adapt or come crashing down. But then, you can also pick yourself up, build yourself and get going. There have been times when negative thoughts have overshadowed one’s mind and overthinking has happened, and one feels that things are out of control. But one has to consciously direct all that negativity into some sort of optimism.
In the last few months, people have redirected their energies and tried to learn something new, which is a great way to go. I also don’t blame people who haven’t been able to do that because there are so many factors that are playing in your life. I understand that it’s not easy, and again I am grateful that I can be counted among the handful who didn’t have to struggle for work... I got films. Personally, of course, my parents are old, and I worry for them. But otherwise, it’s been a good time for me. The initial phase of the lockdown was a little jerky... there were a few hiccups... but I learnt to cope. Work really kept me busy and through work, I did a lot of research and learnt many new things. I got to work with new people and build new experiences in my life.

Everyone who works with Akshay Kumar has a story about him. What’s yours?

Everyone knows he’s a fitness freak and irrespective of what the weather is like, he goes for his morning swim. I am so lazy! And I am someone who is used to hot showers and he would keep telling me, ‘You should always take cold showers for more energy’. And I am like, ‘How do I get myself to be that disciplined?!’ (Laughs) Maybe some day.

He’s great fun. He’s such a fun person to have around. He can crack you up at any moment. He has such good energy. I once happened to tell him that my father is a big fan of his. And he just picked up the phone to call him. I am somebody who goes to set and then back to my hotel room. Because of Akshay sir, this was one film shoot where we would all sit together for lunches and dinners... he would make sure we were one big family who were all involved and entertained. We spent some good quality time together. His family was also there and we would play board games and defeat each other in Ludo... and I must say that he is very, very competitive (laughs). And so am I... I am quite a sore loser, but I am glad I didn’t throw a fit. He was such a pleasure to work with.

How are you choosing your parts after the huge success of War?

The criterion has always been the same. Something really needs to excite me in a film. If the tonality of a film doesn’t work for me, I will skip it. All the films that I have been part of so far, the content has clicked with me on an individual and personal level. One always wants to work in the best films, but then you have to be realistic and pick from what has been offered to you. I have simply picked the best from what has come my way. I am only hoping that the work that I have done now gets me more credible work. I am keeping my fingers crossed because I have three releases (Bell Bottom, Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui, Shamshera) this year and I am just hoping that people go back to the theatres soon.

I am a movie buff and I really miss going and watching films in theatres. I did watch Wonder Woman recently. I was so scared and sceptical, but the safety measures are so good... people sit apart and everyone wears their masks inside the audi. By the time the vaccine comes in, I am hopeful people will adapt again and the situation will only get better.