Shahid Kapoor’s life at the moment is all about love and war, thanks to Prabhu Deva who has turned him into a Romeo-cum-fighter in his upcoming film R… Rajkumar. Sreya Basu in conversation with the actor in Mumbai.
You have always wanted to do a rustic action film and it seems R…Rajkumar just fits the bill. Right?
Absolutely. When I was offered the film, for me it was an easy decision to make because I have always loved the films that Prabhu Sir has made. I am sure every boy wants to do a dark, edgy, masaledar action film and R…Rajkumar is full-on, hardcore action. It is high on style and high on action. It is a great role for me to get. It’s a great change in image to get.
The film was earlier titled Rambo Rajkumar but Rambo was replaced with R due to copyright issues. Now, what does this R stands for?
R for me is robot as I have copied Prabhu Sir like a robot. He even told me on how to kiss my heroine (Sonakshi Sinha) and during that time how much I should pout my lips. So whatever you see on screen, it’s Prabhu Sir’s world where all the actors have just followed him blindly.
How was the shooting experience?
It was very tiring also as I had to do a lot of action. But I had an absolute ball.
How is your chemistry with Sonakshi Sinha?
This was the first time me and Sonakshi were working together and we were comfortable with each other from Day 1. It was really fun working with her. She is a very fine actor and a very, very nice person as well.
You are regarded as one of the best dancers of Bollywood. It must have been easy to match up to Prabhu Deva’s steps?
There is a little bit that me and Prabhu Sir have done together. The rest of it, he was standing there and making sure that all the bones in my body are broken. I used to think I am a very good dancer until I met Prabhu Sir. After dancing with him, I realized how much more I have to struggle because his style is very different and even more difficult.
Do you believe only hard work is not enough to become a successful hero?
When I entered the industry I never knew you have to do so many things to become a hero. For example, now just putting your hard work in a film is not enough. We spend 27-28 days and that too 18 hours a day for promotion of the film. But everything seems beautiful to me as I love my job. And then there is luck. To achieve stardom you need at least a little luck by your side. Having said that, I would like to add that the most successful actors are those who have handled their bad phases well.
Are you satisfied with your careergraph?
I don’t work to satisfy myself. I work to satisfy the people I work with. I am happy if they are happy with me and my work.
What is that one thing that you have changed about yourself in the last, say, two-three years?
I used to shy away from communicating with people. But I have changed that thing about myself. Now I speak and communicate a lot and I have seen that it does make a difference. Connecting with people is very important for an actor. (TWF)
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