Ayushmann Khurrana: ‘Anek is an important film which cannot be watched with a commercial lens’

Actor Ayushmann Khurrana believes in cinema for change and that every artist has a social responsibility. He feels, Anek is going to bring awareness to the people of the mainland about the northeast which has been ignored. Ayushmann explains how our diversity is our biggest strength and weakness and it depends on how we take it. For him, the storyline comes first and if that storyline can offer him a good role then that is a blessing. Excerpts:

You have played the role of a cop in Article 15, but how has the experience been different from playing an undercover cop for Anek?

This is the second time I am playing a cop. In Article 15, I was more vulnerable as a cop. This cop is more in control of the situation. But of course, there is a conflict in his head about whether to follow the senior’s protocol or to follow his heart and go with the locals as in the people of the Northeast. The film is more challenging than Article 15 if I have to compare. The preparation was also different in terms of physicality.

The issue of the Northeast is bigger…But how will Anek bring about a difference in the thought process of the people?

I believe in cinema for change and I believe that every artist has a social responsibility. Anek is an important film and cannot be watched with a commercial lens. But having said that, the trailer has resonated with the people and I am sure the audience will like the film as well. It was a very honest attempt to bring about this film and a lot of research went behind it. It is more of an awareness for the people of the mainland about the northeast which has been ignored.

How is it that we are unable to get over the differentiation with the northeast people and the typical mentality that we have?

India is a rare country and it is a multicultural and multiethnic country. But it is also a developing country. The combination of lacking awareness and being multicultural and multiethnicity, is very volatile. So, it is very important for us to have these people to people contact and I am glad that tourism in the north-east is increasing and people go to Gangtok, Shillong and Assam for holidays. Our diversity is our biggest strength and weakness and it depends on how we take it.

What is the fitness routine that you had to go through for this role?

It started with Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui where I had to go through transformation for this film. I had to do shooting for this film back-to-back. So, I utilized this body transformation for this film. But this bulk muscle worked for this character. I was doing a lot of weight training and cross functional training and also a lot of running and cardio because I had to hold the gun and run and director Anubhav Sinha believed that running in front of the camera is different because you have a different posture. It defines you as an actor.

All your films have a message.  Are you choosy about your films or is it that a certain kind of film comes to you?

I am choosy and it is both ways too that cinema with a message comes to me. So, by default and by design., I land up doing films with a message.  I also like to pick up subjects that have a meaning. It is not always about the role. I always keep myself secondary. For me, the storyline comes first and if that storyline has something for me that is a blessing and that is like a cherry on the cake. The entire cake is the story and not my character.

What next?

In my next film, I play a male gynecologist in a small town and Anubhuti Kashyap is directing it. It is releasing this year. And another film that is releasing this year is the Action Hero which is hardcore action and commercial film. For me even in mainstream cinema, it has to be something different, some quirk and it should stand out from the generic films. That is the case with Action Hero.

Choosing a role with responsibility, how much pressure do you take in so that the audience gets the message right?

Pressure to have expectations is a privilege. People having expectations about my performance is a privilege. And it is a happy privilege that gives a lot of curiosity for your films. It is important to have that curiosity built around your films so that intrigue and interest really help the audience to lap it up. I hope that continues and I will keep on making intelligent choices when it comes to choosing my films.

Is it a good time to be an actor?

It is the best time to be an artist especially related to films and the entertainment industry- there are a lot of avenues and OTT has generated a lot of employment and there are many exciting contents coming out. It is more democratic in a way that talent is shining with different kinds of films and shows, different actors from different parts of the country which never happened before. So, I would say it is a revolutionary time.

How has OTT changed your life?

It has been a blessing for the Indian film industry, especially during the time of the pandemic. During that time, we were releasing our films on OTT. Had there been no OTT we wouldn’t have been able to do that. So, it is great that OTT was there for us and it is here to stay. You can go more radical with your experiments when it comes to art because of the presence of digital platforms. Theatre and OTT have to co-exist. Theatrical releases are also happening and it comes on OTT after a month or two. So, basically, both complement each other.

Has OTT also given us a kind of content that has made the audience aware of cinema as in good cinema?

Good or bad I don’t really know about that because that is very subjective. A typical commercial cinema may not be good enough for the vogue audience, but at the same time, typical Bollywood cinema is important for the industry to survive. OTT has made the audience evolve. It has broken all linguistic barriers. The viewers now don’t care about which part of the world the film is coming from or in which language. They will consume it if it is engaging. There are a lot of South Korean films which are doing well in India. At the Box office, I have never seen a Marvel film scoring 30 crores opening and that has never happened before. South Indian films are doing well all over the world. Language is no longer a hurdle. Audiences will consume a film that is entertaining and engaging irrespective of the place it is coming from.

Is Bollywood losing its swag to Southern cinema?

I think it is just a phase where we could not connect with the audience. But we have seen successes like Gangubai Kathiawadi and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. So, we need to figure out which audience we are catering to. If we are thinking about a single screen audience then the film will succeed at the box office level. But having said that, Anek is not that kind of film which you can engage with a commercial lens, it is something like Article 15. It is not the typical commercial cinema. I hope it engages the audience in a different way because it is intriguing.

How has Anek changed your life?

Every film changes my life. And with Anek, I got to learn a lot about certain things. For example, I only knew about the Northeast through my college experiences, when students of the Northeast were a part of me through my theatre group and music group. But the politics of the Northeast is all the more complex and I am getting to know about it. I am reaching out more to people from different parts of the country. That way I have evolved and I am still learning about casteism after Article 15 and about LGBTQ after doing a couple of films on that issue.

How has your journey been in the entertainment industry and what is the message you would like to give to the people to not lose hope now that the pandemic is officially over?

The only prerequisite to being an actor is to know the craft. And most of the actors feel that spending time in the gym will land them in some good roles. But that’s not the case. To be an actor one needs to work on the craft and do acting workshops, do theatre and most importantly live life because most of the acting comes from observation in life. Acting is a sum total of experiences in life. I have always done films that are experimental. I started with a film like Vicky Donar which is completely out of the syllabus from the commercial Indian cinema. And I moved forward with the same type of cinema like Andhadhun, Badhaai Ho, Bala. They were quite radical for theatre. I was taking risks by choosing films that were completely out of the box. So, OTT or no OTT, I will always continue to be experimental.

Anek is releasing on 27th May in cinemas across the globe.

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