His film Crakk — billed as India's "first extreme sports action film" — is now playing in theatres and Vidyut Jammwal, who plays the lead in the Aditya Datt directorial and also doubles as producer — was in Calcutta on Monday to give a post-release push to his film that also stars Arjun Rampal, Nora Fatehi and Amy Jackson. t2 caught up with the always positive and fighting fit Vidyut at OG By The Lake, off the EM Bypass, for a candid chat.

It has been three days since Crakk released. What has the vibe been like?

I have been constantly travelling. I have enjoyed promoting the film a lot...

Most actors dislike promotions...

I am not like most actors (smiles). You know that very well. I loved going to the college (JIS in Agarpara) today. It was good to chat with the college kids and tell them that there are no limitations. When somebody tells them that they can achieve anything, they take a pause. They like it when somebody reiterates what they believe in. I enjoy doing it... breaking a lot of myths and barriers. It is my job as a human being to let everybody know that they are unlimited.

How has Crakk been received so far? I am not limiting that to only box-office numbers...

There is a Mission: Impossible, there is a Fast & The Furious in the world of big-action Hollywood. Crakk has come out of India and the whole world will watch it. Every action piece in the film has been done by me. I don't come from a place of arrogance when I say that, I say it from a sense of belief that we can do it... without spending a lot of money.

In India, actors talk about the big budgets that Hollywood has and hence we can't do that kind of fantastic action in our films. But I believe that we can do it. If you have a team and you have a vision, if you have planning, you can do it. Yes, you can't invest so much money but you can invest your life in it. And when you invest your life, it gives you the best. I have done that and I have got the response that I deserved for it.

Some of the reviewers haven't been very kind to me, but the audience has seen what I have tried to do in this film and appreciated it. Crakk is a relationship story about brothers. It might not be the biggest relationship story but I can assure you that it is the biggest action movie that has come out of India.

Was there anything that propelled the thought of making India's first extreme sports action film?

Film producers in India normally spend money on an action movie without knowing much about action. Their parameters are very small because they haven't seen much. I am proud to say that the action in Crakk is different. The action is something that nobody has ever attempted in the world, especially when it comes to the actor doing it himself. People believe I can do this kind of action and when there is belief, you don't break it. For me, the win happened on the day I watched the movie and realised that we had done something spectacular.

No kind of action is impossible for you. But did some of the unbelievable stunts in Crakk compel even someone like you to step back and take a pause?

I don't ever step back. Either you step away or you move ahead. I believe that everybody should move ahead. If you think that it is not your cup of tea, then you move aside and take a step in another direction.

We got the best action directors from around the world. To get them was not an easy job because we were not paying them big money. I paid them with all that I had... physically, emotionally and mentally. That was my sales pitch and everyone came on board based on it (smiles).

There are seven big action sequences in the movie. And yet they are kind of rooted. The first is the opening sequence in the train, which also has the title track. People climb onto running trains all the time in India. It is a part of our lives. We have people running to catch moving buses. The first sequence was dedicated to all the daredevils who may not be very educated but they know that force is equal to mass multiplied by acceleration. It is amazing!

How many broken bones on this one?

Lots, lots. But that is how it is. If you go into the water and think that you cannot get wet, then you will never be able to go into the water. Whenever I do an action movie, I am ready for all kinds of injuries. I always get injured but I never talk about it because that is my job. I can't keep saying all the time that I am in pain... then why am I an action star? (Smiles)

I am trained to heal my body. I know my body. I listen to it. I don't ignore it. I don't listen to people and their advice about what to do when I am in pain. My body tells me everything.

Was there any particular action set piece in Crakk where you had to push yourself to apply mind over matter?

It is the sequence that has me cycling on top of a bridge. In my opinion, it is one of the biggest action pieces ever done in cinema. We went to Poland and did it atop a massive bridge. I had choreographed it seven months before we had gone there. I knew what I had to do but the French action choreographer said that they had a problem with the Indian insurance and he wouldn't let me do it. I had to pull out my producer card and say that I would do it nonetheless. I climbed onto the bridge using the power of my mind. It is the biggest action set piece I have ever done and it is being massively appreciated.

What is life like as a producer?

Whether you are an actor, producer or director, what you have to first take responsibility for is to be a very good human being. It is as simple as that. The rest of it is tough on many days but it falls into place. I take care to ensure that people are happy on my set. In my production company (Action Hero Films), we have a 'vibe manager', whose job, among other things, is to ensure that there is a good vibe, a feeling of positivity in the office....

That is an interesting job description!

It is! He needs to ensure that people in my company have to be happy and cool while they are at work. He is a hustler...

You are a hustler too...

I don't think I am a hustler. I am passionate about what I do and I constantly try and look for ways to improve myself... but I am not a hustler...

What do you see yourself as?

I like to see people around me happy. If I meet 10,000 people — like the huge crowd at the college today — I don't want even one person to go back and say that I didn't shake hands or speak to them properly.

There has never been any news of you being cold or having misbehaved with fans...

I think that has to do with my upbringing. I never say 'no' to a picture or a handshake. I recently went to a church very early in the morning and as I was leaving, I heard about these two young boys working there who wanted a picture with me but they were not allowed to by the security guys who were there with me. I walked back from the gate to the church to apologise to them and take a picture with them.

Coming back to Crakk, there is the potential for it to become a franchise, right?

Initially, I didn't think of a franchise but I believe that this deserves to have one because it is the first of its kind in India. But then again, it is early days for the film and I am taking one step at a time.

What is the big dream now?

I am living it! In the last five years, there has never been a day when I have not been happy, broadly speaking, and I continue to work on that. No matter how a film of mine does, I always remain the person that I am.

Which is your favourite Indian action film in the last five years? Tell t2@abp.in