Generation Now of Bollywood has many a talented and charismatic actor, but very few can turn on the charm like Ranbir Kapoor. The actor, who hit 40 last year, is self-confessedly in the “best phase” of his life now, with the year gone by giving him not only a massive blockbuster in the form of Brahmastra Part One: Shiva but also marriage to actor Alia Bhatt, and in November, the couple welcomed their daughter Raha.
The party seems to be continuing for Ranbir who is now awaiting the release of his Holi biggie Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar on March 8. Marking Ranbir’s return to the romantic comedy genre after a long time, the Luv Ranjan directorial — a “twisted love story” costarring Shraddha Kapoor, in what is Ranbir’s first time on screen with the actress — is already creating strong buzz with its fun trailer and chartbuster songs. On Sunday, Ranbir — rakishly handsome with a full beard — made a pitstop in Kolkata to promote the film, which included a ‘friendly’ cricket match with Sourav Ganguly at Eden Gardens. Before that, the actor made his way to INOX (Quest) for an interaction with the media on Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, why making a rom-com is tough work, why he’s grateful to Shah Rukh Khan, the advice from Aamir Khan he didn’t follow and being dad to three-month-old Raha. Excerpts....
RETURN TO ROM-COM
Over the last few years, Ranbir has only been seen in intense roles, with an out-and-out romantic comedy missing from his filmography for a long time now. He hopes Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar will fill that gap as well as kick off a new chapter for the genre in Hindi films. “Rom-com is a very tough genre. The concept of love, the conflicts of love are also changing in today’s world. I think what we have been doing is making rom-coms that are more in tune with Western culture. Rom-coms like Jab We Met and Band Baaja Baaraat — which are steeped in our culture, which talk about our characters and present conflicts that are very relatable — have been hard to come by,” said Ranbir, cool and casual in blue tee and jeans.
Ranbir’s return to a romantic comedy was propelled by his latest film’s “perfect script”. “I think Luv Ranjan (the director of Tu Jhoothi Main Maakaar) is a mind-blowing writer. His dialogue writing is like stand-up comedy. Tu Jhoothi Main Maakaar is a very hilarious take on love and family.... I didn’t sign a rom-com for a very long time because I didn’t get a script as perfect as this before,” he said. “I got very lucky with this film because everything was on paper... the way the story was written, the way the characters were written was pretty much perfect. It’s very different from the kind of films I have done before.
A lot of people think that this is my biopic, especially because of the song Pyaar hota kayi baar hain, but I am not playing a Casanova in this film! In the song, I am only saying that if your heart has been broken, don’t worry... pyaar phir se hoga. In life, one has to work hard on one’s relationships. It’s not like what we see in movies... the love that we see in films is very aspirational,” he added, smiling.
The different moods of Ranbir Kapoor at the media interaction on Sunday
‘LUV RANJAN HAS HAD A HISTORY OF FILMS WITH OFF-CENTRE TITLES
When it was first revealed, not many warmed to the title Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, with the trailer later giving us an understanding of why the film is named such. Did Ranbir — who suggested the title of Jab Harry Met Sejal to Imtiaz Ali for his Shah Rukh Khan-Anushka Sharma love story — have anything to do with this one too? Ranbir admits straight off that he had nothing to do with the naming of Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, and was even quite surprised himself when he was told about it.
“When Luv Ranjan first told me about the title, I was like, ‘Kya yaar! Yeh kya title hain?! It’s such a funny-sounding title.’ But he’s had a history of off-centre titles like Pyaar Ka Punchnama and Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, which even till today, many of us struggle with! But honestly, the title conveys the flavour of the film. It’s a love story between two twisted characters. My film Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani also had a slightly off title, but I think that worked in arousing the curiosity of the audiences. I remember when Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge was about to release, half of the people couldn’t even say the whole title. So I feel that off-centre titles really work and I hope it does in our case too,” said Ranbir.
‘SHRADDHA WILL SURPRISE PEOPLE WITH TU JHOOTHI MAIN MAKKAAR’
Ranbir and Shraddha Kapoor have been in the industry for more than a decade now, but Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar marks their first time on screen together. Ranbir has great things to say about his co-star and their screen chemistry. “I have known Shraddha ever since she was born! Our parents have been dear friends and colleagues. She is extremely hardworking, she looks beautiful on screen and she is very passionate about her work. She really understands the tone of these films. When one has such a livewire actor as a co-star, especially in a genre like this, it really needs that give-and-take between two actors. Shraddha is going to surprise a lot of people with Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar because of the graph her character has in the film.”
With Shraddha Kapoor in Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar
‘AN ACTOR WITH ABS IS A VERY SAD PERSON’
So was doing a lighthearted film after a slew of intense parts liberating, t2 asked Ranbir. His answer? “The rom-com genre is not easy because you don’t really have a character to hide behind. You have to reflect a lot of your personality”.
It’s been long since we saw Ranbir flaunting those abs on screen, with his debut film Saawariya giving us a glimpse of them (including a near towel drop). “Every actor who shows abs on screen is a very sad person ultimately, kyunki khaane ko kuch nahin milta hain! To achieve some abs, we starve ourselves for three-four months,” was the laugh-out-loud answer from RK.
MAACHH, MISHTI (DOI) AND MORE
No worries about maintaining those abs when in Kolkata, given that Ranbir — like most in the Kapoor clan — is a huge foodie. ”I had aloo posto and mustard fish and puri just now. Also, I am a big mishti doi lover... toh main chaar baalti mishti doi khaake aaya hoon!” he laughed.
BIOPIC BANTER
Any conversation around Kolkata always brings the focus on one of its most famous residents. Over the last few weeks, there has been a lot of conjecture about Ranbir signing up to play Sourav Ganguly in the former Team India captain’s biopic. Ranbir, however, denies that he has been offered the film. “Dada (Ganguly) is a living legend, not just in India but also around the world.
A biopic on him will be very special. Unfortunately, mujhe yeh film offer nahin huyi hain. I believe they are still working on the script.”
Ranbir was all too happy to speak about biopics, given that he has played Sanjay Dutt in Sanju and has been involved with the writing of Kishore Kumar’s biopic with his Barfi! and Jagga Jasoos director Anurag Basu for many years now. “For the last 11 years, I have been working on writing the biopic of Kishore Kumar with Anurag Basu. I think working on a biopic requires a lot of hard work. Apart from getting the physicality right, there is a lot more work to do. When I did Sanju, I was not really getting the way he walks or talks... it was more about internalising him, what he is as a person, his soul. An actor has a lot of people to help him get the physicality of a character right, but understanding the emotionality is solely the job of the actor,” offered Ranbir.
SUCCESS AND FAILURE
Ranbir has seen both success and failure at close quarters with 2022 itself giving him a huge hit in Brahmastra and a big flop in Shamshera. How does he wrap his head around both? “From very early on in my career, I have been detached from both success and failure. Failure has always taught me something... about myself, about life.... Failures are very important and I think it’s necessary to accept your failures and also speak about them. This is true especially for people like me who have a platform to speak about our failures, so that someone else can take a lesson out of them,” he said.
Speaking of lessons, Ranbir was forthcoming in disclosing an invaluable piece of advice that actor Aamir Khan had given him before he joined the movies. “He gave me a piece of advice and I am disappointed with myself that I haven’t followed it so far. He told me, ‘Just pack a bag and travel around the country. See different cultures, meet different people... understand your country and understand the different characters that you meet. It is then that you will be filled with so many different personalities and you can showcase them on-screen.’” Will Ranbir become Bunny from his film Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and be bitten by the wanderlust bug one day? Only time will tell!
‘I AM VERY GRATEFUL TO MR SHAH RUKH KHAN. HE DESERVES ALL THE SUCCESS’
Speaking of success, it doesn’t get bigger than Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan in recent times, which is still going strong in cinemas more than a month after release. Ranbir is ecstatic with the kind of success Pathaan and SRK has met with.” The film industry has greatly benefited from what Mr Shah Rukh Khan and the entire team of Pathaan have done at the box office. Look at what he has done over the last 25-30 years. I have seen him as an actor and I have had the opportunity to work with him on a couple of scenes. To have that kind of longevity and love for so many years is not easy. He deserves all the success.”
Ranbir with Shah Rukh Khan
‘I AM A BIG TROLL MYSELF’
It’s well known that though Ranbir is not officially on social media, he does keep track of what’s happening around him with a Finsta account. How does he react to the kind of intense, often brutal, trolling some of his colleagues are subjected to? His quick-as-a-whip answer: “I am not officially on social media. But I am actually a troll in real life... I troll everyone. I troll my friends and I troll Alia a lot! Most trolling is fun and should be taken lightheartedly. Sometimes, some trolls hit below the belt, but that’s fine. Eventually, we are public figures and whatever work we do, it’s out there for people to judge us. They own us. And if they shower us with love, they are more than welcome to throw bricks at us also. Eventually, it’s their money and what we are doing is for their entertainment”.
FATHERHOOD AND FOOTBALL!
A huge turn in Ranbir and Alia’s life has been the birth of their daughter Raha in November last year. Ranbir automatically breaks into a smile when asked about being a father. “Fatherhood is very fulfilling. She (Raha) has just started smiling and the first time she smiled at me, it just broke my heart. Even getting those 20 minutes with her this morning before my flight completely rejuvenated me. I have been a father for just three months and so it’s tough to say in what way it has changed me. But I am very grateful, it feels like a blessing. It feels like a new kind of understanding and love.”
So is he a hands-on dad? “I am a burping specialist now! Before I became a father, I had no idea that burping plays such a big part in the routine of a newborn. When I am at home, I just don’t leave her. It’s just magical being around her!” smiles Ranbir.
Ranbir and Alia with daughter Raha
Any chat with Ranbir is incomplete without discussing football and since this was our first meeting after his favourite team Argentina and his favourite player Lionel Messi won the World Cup last year, this was a question waiting to be asked. “After the birth of my daughter, the second-best feeling was Argentina winning the World Cup. It had to happen, Messi deserved it and we all fans deserved it. It was the perfect World Cup for Messi,” said Ranbir.
But has Messi switching clubs from FC Barcelona to Paris Saint Germain divided Ranbir’s loyalties? “Oh, trick question,” laughs Ranbir. “Messi switching to PSG is something I understand. I am a very big Messi fan and I wouldn’t want to criticise him. The heart is still with (FC) Barcelona, but I also slyly watch the PSG matches!” he signs off.
