REPORT
stand first. In movies we tend to extend the reality, so
maybe in reality if I make them understand they will actually understand. Sometimes a superstar is unable to
say what he feels to millions of people and it gets misunderstood. This is also a story of a misunderstood movie
star. So, after this movie if something like this happens
to me in reality, I’ll sit with that girl or guy for a good 10
to 12 days and make them understand.
Where did you get the reference of Gaurav’s body language and dialect from?
The director Maneesh Sharma is from Delhi. Initially
when I had come to Mumbai from Delhi, I used to be very
sad that nobody was giving me to play a character from
Delhi. That time I used to speak like a typical Delhi-ite. It
has been 25 years since then and I had forgotten how to
talk like that. But Maneesh and everyone involved with
the film remembers the dialect and the whole body language of Delhi. So they helped a lot. A lot of actors in this
film were also from Delhi. Toh main sun sun key koshish
karta tha key Delhi ka jo flavour hai usko character mein
realistically le kar ayu. I’m from Delhi so it should be
genuine and not sound wrong to Delhi-ites.
What was the most challenging part for you in Fan?
As a professional actor you should do things to the best
of your capabilities. Having said that, physically this was
a very challenging film for me. There was a lot of running
in the action scenes. I’m a little injured now... In fact, I
was injured while shooting for the Jabra song. I think the
whole unit was very kind to me while shooting it. While
shooting in Croatia and London it was even more difficult because it was so cold. At this age, to turn around
and play a 24-year-old and to keep that energy plus to
play two different roles in a day, yes it was difficult. But
the team made it very easy, they constantly asked me to
sit down, relax and take a break.
Do you remember your first encounter with a Fan?
I don’t know if they were fans or not. But I was driving in a two-wheeler in Delhi and there was a motherdaughter duo. When my scooter crossed them, both of
them yelled, ‘Abhimanyu Rai!’(the character he played
in the hit TV serial Fauji in 1989). For the next two years
everyone only called me Abhimanyu or Abhi. So I got the
first taste of people recognizing me because of these
two ladies. I don’t know where they are today but I want
to tell them thank you for making me feel like a star at
that point in time.
Did people recognize you in the streets of Delhi in your
Gaurav make-up while shooting for Jabra? How difficult
was it for you?
It was very difficult to shoot with the make-up because it
was very sticky! While shooting a lot of pictures had also
leaked. We were shooting in Indra vihar colony in Delhi
when a lady came up to me and said, ‘Arre Shah Rukh
Khan ke asli daant nahi hain. Yeh toh nakli daant lagata
hai!’ Some women wanted to click pictures with me but I
didn’t want to reveal the look so I denied. But they said,
‘Kyu nahi? Tum toh bade young aur acchhe lag rahe
ho!” (laughs) I got such reactions. Maneesh was very
particular about shooting Jabra only in Delhi and nowhere else. Many people gathered during the shoot but
it was a great experience. It wouldn’t have turned out the
way it is without the Delhi touch.
What can fans expect from Fan?
People may not like the fan Gaurav because he may
not turn out to be someone they thought he was. Or
maybe they won’t like the superstar Aryan Khanna because he may turn out to be mean. But at the end of
the day it’s just a film. I'm not like any of the characters
that I have played in 25 years. Very few people know
the real me. This film is just for entertainment and you
can’t please everyone. So, hopefully people will like it
and enjoy the two characters that Maneesh has etched
out superbly. Fans see you in a certain way and that’s
how they become your fan. Do you consciously need
to maintain that certain image of yours