'Believe in doing stories I feel attached to': Sonam Kapoor Ahuja

After the socially-relevant movie, Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga, in which she became the first mainstream actress to play a lesbian, Sonam K Ahuja is ready to charm the audiences with her next, The Zoya Factor. Based on Anuja Chauhan’s book by the same name, it’s about a girl who is considered lucky for the Indian cricket team. The captain, however, rubbishes the theory. Sparks fly between the two, ending in a romance. “It’s a lighthearted film. There’s no special message and it’s not trying to say anything. After an intense film like Ek Ladki... I wanted to do a fun film,” Sonam smiles. While she reveals that she’s been lucky for her father Anil Kapoor, as after her birth, he got a spate of hits, she feels that hard-work goes hand-in-hand with luck and destiny. Excerpts from a freewheeling chat...  

Had you read the book before doing the film? Whose idea was it to adapt it for screen?

I’ve read a lot of Anuja’s books. I already own the rights to her Battle of Bittora, and we’re trying to produce it. The script is ready and we may make it next year. I had read The Zoya Factor, which is a great book. I was offered the film when it was with other production houses like Saregama and Red Chillies. There was always talk about me doing the film, but it was never made. Then, Aarti Shetty and Pooja Shetty acquired the book’s rights, and called me up. They felt only I, and nobody else, could play the role. I thought the same, and was glad they offered it to me. Also, after doing an intense film like Ek Ladki Ko, I thought in this day and age, especially because of all the horrible stuff that’s going on in the world, when you go to the theatre, you want to see a fun film and The Zoya Factor is that.

Was it fun shooting for the film, too?

Yes. The weird thing was this film is all about luck, but everything just kept going wrong every day. For example, I had to put on weight and perm my hair. In the book, the character is a little plump and has frizzy hair. Since I’m not chubby and have poker-straight hair, I decided to perm them because it would have been difficult to curl them to that extent every day. So, I went to one of the best salons in the city. They forgot to put a protector on my head so that my hair is not damaged by the perming product, and my hair got burnt. Nobody knows about this, but that’s what happened. I also gained 10 kilos for the role, and it was hard to lose the weight. I’ve had mean things said to me, like ‘you’re looking so fat’. Some people asked if I was pregnant! Thankfully, I’ve lost that weight. I love doing comedy and I was working with my chacha (Sanjay Kapoor) and Dulquer Salmaan for the first time. It was a lot of fun.

Sanjay Kapoor plays Sonam’s father in The Zoya Factor

Your uncle Sanjay Kapoor plays your father in the film. How was it working with him?

I worked with my dad in Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga and now my chacha plays my father in The Zoya Factor. Our family is entrenched in films. We eat, breathe and live movies. It was great to work with my uncle because I realised he has absolutely no ego. You’re working with your niece, who’s the lead of the film, but you have no qualms about it, and you’re happy to be a part of it. I’ve always been respectful of my chacha. Actually, I don’t even think of him as my uncle, he’s like a friend since he’s the youngest (brother) in the family and I’m close to Maheep (Sanjay’s wife). 

How much do you believe in luck and destiny?

I believe a lot in destiny and that luck has to be on your side. But I also believe it has to be a combination with hard work. Just because everything is written, you can’t just sit on your bum and expect it to happen. Whatever I’ve learnt about work is from my dad and I haven’t seen a more hard-working man than him. He’s extremely talented and possibly the best actor in India; at the same time, he’s been in the right place at the right time.

To what extent has your career been about luck and how much has destiny played a part in it?

I’m born into a certain family, right? That’s destiny. I come from a film family and I decided to assist Sanjay Leela Bhansali on a movie. Ranbir (Kapoor) was already on it and I knew him since I was a child. When I applied for the job, SLB didn’t know I was Anil Kapoor’s daughter because nobody had ever seen me at events, as I hadn’t been photographed before. Ranbir told him, ‘My friend is coming for the job of an intern’. He was making Bajirao Mastani with Salman Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan then, not Black. When I met SLB, he said, ‘I want to cast you in my film’. That, I guess, is destiny because without even knowing I’m Anil Kapoor’s daughter, he told me that. Of course, I had to audition after that.

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At that time, Shraddha (Kapoor), Katrina (Kaif), Deepika (Padukone) — we were all auditioning together. Even for Delhi-6, I had to audition first. So, I think it was a combination of luck, destiny and hard work. Because I’m sure there are lots of girls who are prettier, more talented or more hardworking than me but it’s always about being in the right place at the right time. At the same time, if you don’t work hard, and if you don’t have talent, you cannot survive.

Sonam K Ahuja (Pic: The House Of Pixels)

Was it Neerja that changed your career’s trajectory and the kind of roles you wanted to do?

I would say that it was after Raanjhanaa. Out of the 18 films that I have done, three have been unsuccessful. If I had to look back at my career, I would say Delhi-6 and Saawariya were great for me. Aisha was also amazing and so was I Hate Luv Stories. Then I did three films — Mausam, Thank You and Players — which didn’t work. Straight after that, I did Raanjahnaa, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, Khoobsurat and Neerja. There was a period of two years when my films didn’t work. After that, I haven’t had films that did not work. When I did Raanjhanaa, I was 26, now I am 34 — so in eight years, I have done pretty much okay.  I don’t think I’m doing that badly.

Do you choose your scripts by gut feeling?

I don’t believe in gut feeling. I believe in doing stories that I feel attached to. Also, I like to work with good people. It has to be a combination of the two. I’ve been offered big films by some directors with whom I didn’t want to work either because I didn’t like them as people, the way they spoke to me or how they portrayed women. But I’ve worked with filmmakers like Ram Madhvani (Neerja director) who had helmed only one film Let’s Talk, 10 years before that. I have worked with a Shelly Chopra Dhar in Ek Ladki, Shashanka Ghosh in Khoobsurat — he had done just one film Quick Gun Murugun. I’ve worked with filmmakers like Rajkumar Hirani, R Balki,  Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. I believe in collaborating with people who are like-minded, progressive, and who want to make good cinema. It doesn’t matter what the length of the role is, as long as my character is of importance.

From doing a cameo to being a part of an ensemble cast and playing lead roles, you have done everything in your recent releases...

Yes, even Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (BMB), I did because I was working with Rakeysh and his team after Delhi-6. Also, I thought if I have to do two songs and four scenes, I would rather do that in a film like BMB than any other typical commercial film. In a movie like Pad Man, I am there throughout the second half and it’s a film that says something amazing. In Neerja and Khoobsurat, I am there from the beginning till the end. I know that I have to be a part of scripts that mean something, that challenge me; stories that are entertaining, or have a message.