I don’t feel successful living in today’s times: Varun Dhawan gets candid!

Varun Dhawan is returning to the big screen after Dilwale last December. This time around, the two-hero film (with John Abraham) seems to have been a happier experience. From the action drama of Rohit Shetty to that of Rohit Dhawan, Varun seems to have grown up. Here he talks about his upcoming film, breaking the ice with his co-star and why he is still willing to do a two-hero film. Read on...

Did you sign Dishoom because it’s directed by your brother?
I signed Dishoom primarily because of the script. I found it very interesting as Rohit signs original scripts. The whole match-fixing thing in Indian cricket has been a big thing in the last five years with bookies surfacing, illegal betting and the menace in cricket and then the whole clean-up. People want a clean-up in cricket because it’s like a religion. I believe there are two sides to it. Some innocent cricketers can get wrongly accused; while money and greed can make some  go to any extent and do wrong things. So the type of character that Rohit wrote about cop Junaid Ansari (who I play) is a believer, like the Indian public, who believes in all good things, but when something wrong is happening, they realise it. Match-fixing is only an angle in Dishoom.

Tell me about your character.
I play a Middle-Eastern cop who speaks Arabic. I am based in UAE. What touches me in this film is about how if India’s top batsman were to go missing, the world would come to a standstill. It shows that money is the religion and not about being a Hindu, Muslim or India and Pakistan and how greed can drive you to do wrong things. Junaid is a reluctant hero. He becomes one  by accident.  He’s also a little nerdy. He is about what the law is, and follows that to the T.  I have always played naughty characters before this.

Both Rohit and David are family. Did you take that into consideration when signing the film?
No. For Dishoom, I saw it as producers Sajid Nadiadwala and Eros and music director Pritam, Rohit Dhawan after Desi Boyz. So for me, it’s putting it in all the boxes — young, dynamic director, music by one of the best composers — is what got me to do it, along with the script. It has a brain and a heart. It does have that emotion and when you see the film, you will realise that everything has been well-thought out.

Tell me about the helicopter scene.
When we were shooting it, we were not seeing how expensive it was because our lives were on the line. There’s no rehearsal you can do for a scene like this because eventually you are just hanging from the helicopter and gripping it. You leave it and you are gone. We were told the dos and don’ts. When you are taking off, a lot of mud, stones and dust flies into your eyes, so you have to wear protective gear, but once you are up in the air you remove that and then it’s just the wind smashing you in the face at 180 km/hour. It was very exciting. For the sake of being an adrenaline junkie, I will do anything for the film. Even in ABCD2, I was jumping from the Grand Canyon...

As an actor, do you have any phobias?
I have a fear of heights, but when the budget is high, so many things are on the line. As an actor, you just forget everything and do it. Cinema has reached that level today where there is a demand for high-octane action. We have so much exposure from international cinema that even if we are cheating it, it is so easy for people to make that out. We are competing with the West. We have to make sure that Dishoom’s action is right up there and as a film, along those standards and lines. Dishoom is my only release, so I made sure that I gave it my all. I had one minor injury when I fainted after my finger got stuck in a car in Abu Dhabi and my BP had dropped, but then this is all part-and-parcel of what you have to do. It’s no big deal. I am very proud of the way the film is looking. Indian cinema is evolving — is still Indian at heart even though the look is international. The action in Dishoom has definitely been the most difficult to shoot. There’s one sequence on the bike as well —where John and I are on a quad-bike and we bump and fall down the mountains. We rehearsed for that. It wasn’t easy, but it was fun. There are a lot of tongue-in-cheek dialogues. Junaid is a Honey Singh fan while John is of Mohd Rafi and Kishore Kumar. There are clashes of ideology between us.

Did it take time to build a rapport with John?
I have known John since Desi Boyz. When they were shooting for it, I visited them on the sets many times in London so I have seen John behind-the-scenes and spoken to him a lot. John liked me for my films before I started so we clicked quite quickly. We play very different characters so we are not stepping on each other’s shoes at all..

Are you planning not to do any two-hero films after this?
I haven’t said that. Just because I am doing a solo-hero film in Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya and have not signed any films after Dishoom, people are assuming that. I am on the lookout for other scripts. Let’s see if something interesting turns up but I am not against two-hero projects. The film and story matter. Two and three heroes are just titles we give. The audience goes to see the film for the film. They don’t say, ‘Arre, yeh bhi hai toh main kyun dekhoon? I want to work with good, disciplined actors who are passionate about filmmaking.

You had three releases last year..
Yes, and the back-to-back promotions took a lot out of me. BKD is now releasing next year because Alia now has already a few releases this year (Kapoor & Sons, Udta Punjab and Dear Zindagi this November) so we didn’t want to clutter the scene further.  The pairing is such that Karan wanted to save it and give it that release it (March 17, 2017). After Badrinath, I have Judwaa 2. 

In spite of having many hits, you remain very grounded. Is it because you come from a film family?
I don’t know... I wouldn’t credit it as coming from a film family but as coming from a good family. I will take the fact that my parents have brought me up well as a compliment. It is easy to let success get to you. I just feel that this is my understanding as a human being and something my generation is going through. Life is very uncertain today. What is success? Today there is bombing in Istanbul, terrorist attacks in Bangladesh which are both very close to India. There is so much hatred and defeat spreading among the human race at this moment which is very sad. My professional/personal success is not really a success for me. If I can bring a smile on people’s faces in these troubled times through my films then I am happy. As an individual in today’s times, I would like to do much more and bigger things if I want to feel successful. I don’t feel successful living in these times.

Who are you closer to – father, mother or Rohit?
I am closest to my brother though I am close to all. I tell him everything. When I get really bugged with dad and my brother then I tell my mum everything. But then I am the youngest in my family and everybody listens to me. I used to be pampered, but then not anymore. They think I am big enough not to be.

When are you shifting into your new home?
From August onwards. Work is still happening and there’s still time. It’s just one floor down in the same building as my parents. I needed some space of my own because after so much work you don’t want to be cluttered, after going out so much you just need your own space to relax and think. I wanted a place which is bare and doesn’t have too much furniture. I want it to be empty. Mom’s doing the décor but I don’t want a swanky place, simple with lots of greenery — a pad of my own.

Why aren’t you open about your relationship with Natasha?
Because it’s something very private to me. I don’t like talking about it. Some things I feel like talking about and some things I don’t. I don’t feel any reason to explain that part of my life to anyone. That is it.

When do you plan to get married?
Not at the moment. There’s too much work at the moment to enjoy that aspect of my life. With every celeb, it’s now boring to read about my linkups..