An Actor Should Prove His Versatility Again And Again In Every Film Instead Of Resting On His Past Laurels- Ranveer Singh

Jyothi Venkatesh

Ranveer Singh has always been a bundle of energy and excitement, whether it was for the first time when I met him when he was promoting his maiden film as an actor- Band Baaja Baraat or now when he is excited about the phenomenal success of his latest film Simmba, which ahs mopped up over 150 cr in just five days. In this freewheeling interview, Ranveer Singh tells JYOTHI VENKATESH how marriage to Deepika Padukone has changed him after the success of Simmba, why he did not want to see the original Telugu version of Simmba before he set out to shoot for Simmba, and how he is looking out excitedly for the release of his next films like Gully boys, 1983 and Takt

In what way have you changed as a person after your recent marriage to Deepika Padukone?

To tell you the truth, the marriage to Deepika has changed me hell of a lot. In fact, I have still more scope to improve as far as discipline and time management are concerned. I feel more responsible now after marriage. I keep on telling her that I did not even dream of a wedding like the one we had. She has given me a dream wedding.

Did you see the original Telugu version Temper of Simmba before you started shooting for Simmba?

No. I did not make it a point to see Temper before I started shooting for Simmba because I did not want to be sub consciously influenced by what the actor did in temper. I wanted to give my own new dimension to Simmba.

How did you approach your role as Simmba which is an off shoot of Rohit Shetty’s hit franchise Singham?

Singham was a very honest cop whereas as you know Simmba is a kameena cop. I am glad Rohit chose me to play the title role of Simmba in his film Simmba. The highlight of the film is the entry of Singham Saab, which is being welcomed with ceetees. I remember I too was a part of the audience of masala mainstream films at one time when I used to make it a point to go to single screens like Chandan and Plaza. I had even rooted for Salman in Paris for Sultan. I knew that Simmba had the potential to be the most remembered cameos of all times.

How did you bag Simmba? It is your first film with Rohit Shetty.

I have been an ardent fan of Rohit Shetty. You get a film like Simmba only once you have earned your own equity because of your own earlier films, not otherwise. I had always wanted to do a masala film and was offered several masala films offers after Bajirao Mastaani  but I wanted to do opnly Roit Shetty’s film, because in today’s times, opnly Rohit Shetty can make a successful masala film, no one else.

In what way are you and Simmba different and similar to each other?

The only similarity between Simmba and I is that both of us are daring as far as our lives are concerned. I do not get scared of anyone in life and do everything fearlessly in my life. I am what I am and thankful to my family. I am not scared even of death.

How has the year 2018 turned out to be for you?

The year 2018 has been a massive year for me. It started for me and Deepika with Padmavat. It has been my biggest commercial hit so far which collected 30 crores. Padmavat was one more plus point as far as my career is concerned.

What next, after Simmba?

On the anvil for an early release is my eagerly awaited project Gully Boys with Zoya Akhtar as the director with Alia Bhatt as my leading lady. For the first time in my career, I am working with both Zoya and Alia. With Gully Boys, I had the great opportunity to rap too and also explore my musical side. It was very creatively fulfilling.

What about the biopic on cricketer Kapil Dev in which you are playing the role of Kapil Dev?

I will start training for my role in 1983, which is based on the life of Kapil Dev Paaji in January. Then there is Karan Johar’s ambitious film Takt. It is a challenging role that I am doing as the leading man in Takt. What you sow, you do reap. If you work with sincerity, it will fetch you awards as well as rewards like I got for my performance in Padmavat. I struggled a lot during the days when I was shooting for Padmavat.

To what extent do you believe in superstition?

I do believe a lot in superstition. Out of the eight years that I have been a part of the film industry, I have been with Deepika for at least six years. It was she who has kept me grounded. By nature I am not at all that hard working to work for 18 hours continuously and sleep for just six hours. I am basically an ayyash and like to chill out but for Padmavat I worked for 20 hours too on the sets. I am lucky I have been lucky enough to get a solid partner like Deepika.

What is your approach to acting as such?

I always feel that acting is very subjective. Sometimes I may not like what you like in a film and vice versa, because each of us connects in a different way to different things. For me the greatest actor is someone like Wills Smith who does two different characters in two different ways.  I have always wanted to make myself a versatile performer like Daniel D Lewis.

Which are your favorite films till date as an actor?

Lootera, Ram Leela, Bajiorao Mastani, Dil Dhoondtha Hai and Padmavat.

What has given you a big high in recent times as an actor?

I am glad that people have been able to realize that I am an actor with a wide range as my films Padmavat and Simmba were released the same year one after another and my next in the list- Gully Boys also will see the light of the day shortly I feel that it is very important for any actor to prove his versatility again and again instead of resting on his past laurels.

You have acted with Rohit Shetty in Simmba and Zoya Akhtar in Gully Boys. How was the experience of working with two diverse directors?

You are right bang on. Both Rohit and Zoya are poles apart as directors. If one is cheese the other is chalk. It is up to the actor to make both feel that no other actor can do the role better than he can.

Has Ajay Devgn watched Simmba? What was his reaction to the film of which he is also a part?

Boney Kapoor, Anil Kapoor and Ajay saw a sequence of Simmba together a few days before the film was released. I was delighted when Rohit told me that it was for the first time that Ajay had reacted wholeheartedly. Rohit added that it was ten times more than how he had reacted in the past

Did you expect that Simmba would emerge a super grosser?

I knew that expectations about Simmba were higher this time before it was released. And we knew we had to deliver more than the expectations to make it a hit but we did not at all dream that Simmba would take masala genre of cinema to such a greater height. Now I can say that the genre itself should be regarded as a new bench mark.

Are you happy with the way your career has soared till today?

To tell you the truth, I did not even dream that I’d reach such heights as an actor. I’d say that It has happened only because of my mom’s blessings and my supporting family which includes dad, mom and my sister and nani who recently expired. Imagine  am only 33 and Amitabh Bachchan whose films I used to see at Chandan as a teenager and dance and clap, danced with me at my own wedding. I call myself a sperm whih has swam across the ocean

Go on!

My dream was to become a hero in Hindi films. I cannot believe that I have actually become a hero in a Hindi film. A poster of Rocky sums up my life. I have deposited in my bank locker. Imagine as an actor, I have had the opportunity to act with the likes of Ajay Devgn, Anil Kapoor and marry Deepika.

Is it true that you are a mamma’s boy and women have played a vital role in your life?

Yes. It is 100 per cent true that I am a mamma’s boy. Women have looked after me and my dad has always been the provider in our family. My sensitivity towards women is more. I feel that my soul is definitely feminine though the mortal vessel is macho. I am very extra sensitive to women.

Is Simmba out of your system after it was released and made it to 150 cr league in just 5 days?

 No. I made it a point to go to all the theatres where Simmba is running bow- single screens as well as multiplexes to see for myself the reaction to the sequences by the audiences. I played a villain in Padmavat but people admired the character of Khilji in it played by me and clapped for me when I set out to kill a guy. You get addicted to such a reaction in every film but unfortunately it does not happen every time. It was a great feeling to see the reaction of people to the song Khalliwalli in Padmavat. I feel that you tend to get a bigger high when you listen to the catcalls of the audiences at a theatre than when you receive an award at an award function.

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