Mr confident

Determined, relaxed & confident, Imran Khan is gradually emerging as a force to be reckoned with. The actor talks to Rajiv Vijayakar about his upcoming rom-com ‘Gori Tere Pyaar Mein’ and the films on anvil...

He’s come a long way since his Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Na days. Imran Khan’s Gori Tere Pyaar Mein director Punit Malhotra says that the actor’s walk, attire and body language have become more casual, relaxed and confident since they last worked together in 2010 for I Hate Luv Storys.

Imran laughs and nods, “The more you work, the better you get. I am happy with my work so far, but not satisfied! And when you get better in any way, your confidence automatically increases. Show me a girl, for example, who has lost weight and does not flout her improved mindset through her attitude!”

The actor partakes of his meal from home as he speaks, as he has to eat at a fixed time. “Hope you don’t mind,” he says. Why this newfound obsession with a health regimen? “It is for the same reason. I have three shooting-free months now, and I think I should make myself fitter. I would never bother about such things earlier and Kareena Kapoor would even break her diet to indulge in the goodies I brought on the sets!”

Onscreen chemistry

Kareena and Imran share a terrific rapport that also translates into great chemistry that the world has watched in Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu a year back. “Chemistry is either there or not. You cannot develop it!” he feels. “And I would rather have it with Kareena,” he raves.

The actor denies any understanding with Punit that they will collaborate on all of the director’s films, and even points out that he had declined Gori… twice. “There is a bridge shown in a Gujarat village that plays an important role in the script’s second half. I could not understand Punit’s obsession with it.

He finally gave me a narration after some changes (I prefer to read scripts as a rule) and I agreed to do the film. I realised that he was right and that the film would have been far lesser and richer than the rom-com element of the first half that I was comfortable about.”

Imran essays the role of Shriram, a rather selfish, foolish, outspoken boy who does not want to even conform to his South Indian family. He gradually grows into a mature man by the end of the story.

“I think too much is made of actors playing specific communities,” he adds with a smile. “Last time it was about my playing a Muslim for the first time in Once Upon a Time In Mumbaai Dobaara!, I found the hype weird, like it happens over a kiss on screen or when a heroine wears a bikini. Why should such natural things be given so much importance?”

But he does stress that for an actor who always concentrates on a single film at a time, it was disturbing to switch characters when Once Upon… was slightly delayed and he had to alternate that character with Shriram. “That was a bit disturbing as an actor,” he admits.

What, according to him, is his forte as an actor? “I think it is comedy — of course, of the subtle kind,” he says. “I loved Ali Abbas Zafar’s quirky humour in Mere Brother Ki Dulhan. I prefer not to throw a joke in your face, but instead I like to keep it in my palm and say, ‘Come, get it!’”

What next? “I will be working on Vikramaditya Motwane’s Bhavesh Joshi, which, contrary to reports in the media, is about real people, and has no magic elements or even sci-fi in it!” grins Imran and adds, “I don’t know where and how the media gets such bizarre information!”

Those with a sharp eye will recall the actor playing Aamir Khan as a kid in both Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988) and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander (1992). “My childhood was a rewarding phase, thanks to my parents,” he recalls when we mention that. “They made me capable of being independent in thought right from the beginning. I had an honest relationship where my father and mother would never ask me to do something just because they were saying so, but by my being made aware of how my choices would affect me.”

Family matters

Imran is also thankful to his family because they kept him in touch with their culture even as he spent most of his later formative years abroad. “I have always spoken good Urdu even when living abroad and got the nuances of the language right. And when I came to India in 2005, I began taking Hindi lessons, years before my debut as a leading man,” he explains.

An audition by uncle Aamir led to his debut as an actor, but Imran informs us that acting was the last thing in his mind when he came back home. “In America, I trained in writing, direction and cinematography, but not even for a day in acting!” he says with a broad grin. So, when will writing and direction, which have also been his family’s (grandfather Nasir Husain and uncle Mansoor Khan) forte, happen? “Oh, not so soon!” he replies. “But I might turn producer before that. Nowadays, all stars are doing it. And it makes for economic sense.”

Imran, however, nixes any plans of reviving the iconic Nasir Husain Films banner that made classics like Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon or Yaadon Ki Baraat. “I cannot take risks with the reputation of such an iconic banner that made nine hits in the 11 my grandfather ever produced! I will happily take failure myself as a producer, but cannot defile his name,” he states.

His celebrated uncle Aamir Khan, he says, has never been involved with Imran’s work. “In fact, after Delhi Belly that he produced, he has not even watched any of my films. But I am looking forward to his Dhoom 3. It’s looking wow.”

How does he look at solo-hero films and multi-hero movies? “Did you know that the original script of Gori… was planned with Saif Ali Khan and me? That would have been so much fun. And Akshay Kumar in Once Upon… was so ego-free and uncomplicated that he would remove his chappals and sit on the ground to play a game with us. Besides, male co-stars are fun as unlike the heroines, they get ready on the sets quickly.”

What is the status on Imran’s PIL against the Maharashtra state government on increasing the minimum age for alcohol consumption to 25 years? “The Bombay high court has directed the Maharashtra government to respond to me on the issue,” he says.

“Over the years, we have increasingly seen some part of our civil liberties being taken away by the authorities because of some social evils, but the method used cannot be wrong even if the issue is right. If rapes have increased, we cannot tell women to adopt a dress code, can we? We have to keep up our fight for liberty — it is our responsibility. I have taken up this cause as it really needs to be addressed.”