Kareena-Shahid in their forthcoming film Chup Chup Ke

Did Subhash Ghai actually scream at Shahid and Kareena at the 36 China Town party' “I’d rather not give this importance,” Shahid is too polite to not answer. “I drove down all the way from Nainital where I was shooting for Sooraj Barjatya’s Vivaah. I drove for 10 hours to Delhi and caught a flight to Mumbai only for Subhashji’s function. It makes no sense for me to run away without giving any interviews. Why would I come back all the way to Mumbai, tired out of my wits and run back before doing what I had come to do ' talk to the media' It was a miscommunication. We left when dinner was served because I had a very early morning flight for Soorajji’s shooting. Mr Ghai’s people rang up and said the media was waiting. We immediately turned the car around and returned to the venue, came back, gave our interviews. That’s it. There were no fireworks, no need for screaming headlines.”

He’s all smiles. So what if his last film Shikhar didn’t do well, Shahid’s performance came in for a lot of praise. “I’d rather not say anything about the film when it didn’t do well. But, yes, it could’ve been marketed better. But never mind. Let’s look ahead.”

He has two releases coming up in quick succession ' Abbas-Mustan’s 36 China Town (released last week) and Priyadarshan’s Chup Chup Ke. Both costarring Shahid’s real love Kareena. But Shahid shrugs away the question of overkill. “The two films look very different from each other. I’ve always said, if a product is good it’ll do well. My first film Ishq Vishk wasn’t so much hyped. It still did very well, whereas my second film Fida which was far better publicised, didn’t work. The size of the product makes no difference. The content does. I’m very happy with both 36 China Town and Chup Chup Ke.”

He effortlessly slips into talking about his pairing with Kareena. “It’s true we haven’t really had a successful film together. But at the end of the day, it’s the product and not the stars who get rejected. People couldn’t digest the negative ending. They wanted to see me and Bebo doing happy endings. In 36 China Town and Chup Chup Ke there are lots of sweet romantic scenes, though neither is an out-and-out love story. 36 China Town has a love story. But it’s a murder mystery. The driving force of Priyan’s film is comedy. We must do a full-on love story together, if not for the audiences’ sake then our own sake.”

Shahid had great fun with both directors, both first-timers for him. “Bebo has done a number of films with Abbas-Mustan and Priyan. Abbas-Mustan are so well-prepared. If you’ve one question for them they’ve five answers ready. That makes life so much easier for an actor. Even though they’re a duo, they’re totally in-sync with each other. They’re so simple and humble. And yet they make such stylish films! Honestly, as a newcomer it’s a pleasure working with experienced directors like Sooraj Barjatya and Abbas-Mustan. They’ve worked with so many different kinds of actors. I feel I’m in school when I work with them.”

Right now he’s back to shooting for Barjatya’s Vivaah. “We’ve finished about 80 per cent film. It’s very much a Sooraj Barjatya film. It has just two characters principally, me and Amrita Rao. We haven’t been paired together since our first film, Ishq Vishk. Vivaah is an extremely sensitive film. We’ve seen hundreds of love stories. But none so far about arranged marriages. Vivaah shows what happens after two persons have decided to get married.”

He seems to be upbeat about the number of assignments. “I’m blessed to have so many different kinds of directors. But now I need to get even more choosy. I can’t get away with one hit and three flops'not in this day and age. Today an actor has to take responsibility for every success or flop.”

Subhash K. Jha