Ayushmann Khurrana On His Dream Bollywood Run, Wife Tahira Kashyap And More

He’s an outsider who’s made sharp inroads. Apart from talent, he possesses a discerning eye. To sieve the chaff from the grain. He prides over his sense of script and a ear for a good story. Early in his career, he understood the importance of being different to be noticed amidst a surge of clones. His yen for the real, the extraordinary in the ordinary has made him a mascot for middle-of-the road cinema. He’s been game to delve in taboo topics – sperm donation, erectile dysfunction and even confronting the discomfort about the sexuality of one’s parents as in the comedy drama, Junglee Pictures’ Badhaai Ho. With the thriller AndhaDhun, he’s ventured into the chills and thrills genre and yet again undone the mould. That he should be associated with good films is the promise he’s made to himself and the audience. As a person too he’s a work in progress. If theatre encouraged humility in him, a near-tragic experience has brought in a certain detachment, an equanimity, which the vagaries of showbiz can no longer ruffle. Wife Tahira Kashyap’s tryst with cancer has truly bonded the couple further. Ayushmann’s understood where the ‘core’ of his existence lies. His has been a homecoming to eternal truth and love… Excerpts…
Bareilly Ki Barfi, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, AndhaDhun and Badhaai Ho… This seems to be the best phase of your career?

I’m glad because I’ve come into my own now. I’ve learnt a lot in these six years. I’ve realised my biggest talent lies in selecting scripts. If I listen to myself and don’t take too many opinions, I’m in the best situation. My first reaction is always organic. I listen to the script as the guy from Chandigarh, who’s sitting in the theatre and enjoying the film. Then I decide. That happened with AndhaDhun and Badhaai Ho.

AndhaDhun is a whodunit. Was it an attempt to break away from comedy?

It was a deliberate decision. It was in my bucket list to work with Sriram Raghavan. I was waiting for the opportunity so that I could attempt something else apart from doing slice-of-life films. I was the one, who texted him that I wanted to do a film with him. I got to know about the script from Mukesh Chhabra. He said it was about a blind musician, who witnesses a murder. I was excited. I knew Sriram Raghavan would make something extraordinary. He said, “Okay, let’s meet. But, it’s not a film in your zone.” I said, “Of course, that’s why I want to work with you. I don’t expect you to make a slice-of-life-film.”

(Smiles) The next day we had a screen test although he never acknowledges that. He said let’s chill and try doing some scenes. I was so excited that I could not sleep that night. I wanted to break the mould. It’s rare for an established actor to give an audition out here. But it happens in the West all the time.

Are you taking risks to fight competition from your contemporaries?

I chose the unconventional path from my first film (Vicky Donor). It has worked for me. As I said, my talent is to catch that uniqueness in a script. Today, only actors with a special talent will work. What will set you apart is your choice of films and scripts. It’s also important to make your own space. And if you own that space, nothing like it.

Do you fear getting stereotyped in the ‘unconventional’ zone?

Till your films are working, no one will question you. People will only talk when your films don’t work. The onus lies on me because I select scripts that give an entertaining twist to taboo subjects. Actors often take themselves too seriously. They want to change their look and act different in every film. One must understand that the audience is only interested in a different story, not in a different you. In that different story, if you act differently, then that’s a different thing.

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