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| Imran Khan with Kareena Kapoor in Gori Tere Pyaar Mein |
Imran Khan was digging into a bowl of boiled veggies, getting his hair blow-dried and texting on his smartphone — all at the same time — when t2 met him at Taj Bengal on Monday evening. “Thanks to my hectic promotion and shooting schedules, I have become the king of multitasking. Give me 10 jobs and I will do them at a go,” smiled the Gori Tere Pyaar Mein heart-throb.
You refused Gori Tere Pyaar Mein when it was first offered to you. What made you change your mind?
When Punit (Malhotra, director) came to me initially, my problem was not with my role, but with the script. I felt that the whole village set-up in the second half wouldn’t work. I gave Punit my feedback. He wrote it again… I still didn’t like it; he rewrote it, I still had some problems with it. I liked the urban setting of the first half which was a lot like I Hate Luv Storys (Punit’s first film starring Imran and Sonam Kapoor), but I just couldn’t get why the film had to shift to a village after that. I was like, ‘None of this is working. Why does this guy need to go to a village to build a bridge? I don’t care about this bridge!’ (Laughs) But Punit was very, very adamant about setting half of the film in a village.
I think we went back and forth three or four drafts until the point came that I finally understood what he was talking about. I would have settled for a light, frothy rom com, but Punit has given Gori Tere Pyaar Mein many more layers. In retrospect, I am glad he stuck to his guns (smiles).
Punit is a close friend of yours. Did it bother you that when you rejected the film initially, he approached Saif Ali Khan and Shahid Kapoor for your role?
Since I wasn’t very sure about the script, I was actually the one who told him to approach other actors. At first I had suggested that he write another script. In fact, I gave him a lot of ideas like ‘Do a remake of this film or that film’. But Punit was very clear that he wanted to make this film. After the first few drafts I remember telling him: ‘Punit, since you believe so strongly in this script and I don’t, why don’t you make it with someone else?’ But he told me that he wanted to make it with me. He made some changes in the screenplay and gave Sriram (Imran’s character) a strong purpose and backstory to go to this village and make this bridge.
The film’s got a good buzz, especially the songs…
Punit’s got a great sense of music and he gets the best out of Vishal and Shekhar (the music composers of Gori Tere Pyaar Mein). The music has been unanimously liked, whether it is Tooh, Chingam chabake or Dhat teri ki. I am also relieved that people are finding the village setting quite novel. They are thinking it will be different from the usual rom coms.
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Kareena Kapoor and you have a great personal and professional equation. How is she on set?
She’s a gem of a person. I also feel she brings out the best in me as an actor. It’s always important to work with talented people because I feel they push you to give in your best. She’s the kind of actor who is so good that I am always looking to match up to her in every scene. Also, the good thing is that I get the girl here, unlike our previous film Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu. (Smiles)
Your last two films Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola and Once Upon Ay Time In Mumbai Dobaara tanked at the box office. Are you relying too much on Gori Tere Pyaar Mein? Not really. Failure is a part of this business… like it is a part of any other business. I felt that both Matru… and Once Upon Ay Time… were good films in their own right and gave me ample scope as an actor. I got to work with the likes of Vishal Bhardwaj and Milan Luthria who are counted among the most exciting filmmakers today. I am happy with the work I did in these two films and irrespective of their box-office status, I was appreciated in both these films. That’s what matters.
Are you good at handling failure? If you want to be in this business, you have to develop a very thick skin. That’s something I learnt very early on, even though my first film (Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na) was a hit. I am the third generation of my family in films, ya! So I know how it works. You have to soldier on with only one thought: ‘Today is down… tomorrow will be up (smiles)’.
This attitude has actually come from observing Aamir (Khan, Imran’s uncle). You guys only talk about his massive hits, but there was this time in the ’90s when he had six or seven failures on the trot. He was completely down and then things started looking up for him. Failure is something that even the biggest and best have to be prepared for.
But what happens when you see a contemporary like Ranbir Kapoor racing ahead?
(Pauses) The good thing is that someone else’s success doesn’t bog me down; on the contrary, it motivates me to do better. I know it sounds very textbook diplomatic, but that’s how I feel. Both Ranbir and I have seen success as well as failure and we’ve come out of it stronger.
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Since you just mentioned Aamir, what’s your gut feeling about Dhoom:3? It’s the biggest film of the year…
(Smiles) It’s going to start off the (Rs) 300 crore club for sure. It’s going to be massive. It’s Aamir Khan after all!
