‘I feel deeply connected to Pune’

Actor Arjun Kapoor wants to do everything he can to make sure Pune gets an identity through football as well

My earliest memory of football is that I looked like one! As a kid, I never played the sport and never pursued it in school, because we did not have a football arena. ARJUN KAPOOR, ACTOR

Arjun Kapoor is a crowdpleaser and has quite the fan-following in Pune. Recently in the city to launch the jersey of FC Pune City, a football club that he co-owns, the actor also shook a leg to ‘Tune maari entriyaan’ from his film Gunday (2014). The Ishaqzaade (2012) actor says he finds Pune to be an amazing city. “I feel deeply connected to the city,” he says, adding, “It has evolved into a cosmopolitan city thanks to an influx of people from across the country, and its educational parameters have risen so high. It has been great too see the city grow by leaps and bounds. My association with Pune stems from the first year when I affiliated with the club. I want to do everything I can to make sure Pune gets an identity through football as well.”

An ardent fan of the Chelsea Football Club, Arjun started following football at the age of 13. “My earliest memory of football is that I looked like one! As a kid, I never played the sport and never pursued it in school, because we did not have a football arena. Today, this is a fundamental issue in Indian schools, as there is a lack of space for kids to play. I was a victim of the same too,” the actor says.

Now that Arjun co-owns a club in Pune, which is known for its rich Marathi theatre and film culture, has he managed to catch any Marathi films lately? He says, “Honestly, Dibakar (Banerjee) had taken away the real Arjun Kapoor. And, what you see is someone I don’t recognise in the mirror, nor do my gatekeepers at home. I have been completely involved with preparing for my character [for Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar] , so I haven’t had the time to watch any films lately. However, I have heard some great things about Faster Fene. Riteish and Genelia Deshmukh are becoming the torchbearers for bringing Marathi films to the forefront and to the masses. Shreyas Talpade and Nana Patekar are also wonderful and I hope I get to catch their films soon.”

So, would he like to act in a Marathi film? “Yes, why not? But I will have to brush up on my Marathi. My Marathi wasn’t bad in school, but I used to mug up and now I don’t converse in it either. In Mumbai, unfortunately, the only time you speak in Marathi is when you have to speak to a cop,” he says, laughing.

Arjun Kapoor performed to his songs during the launch ceremony

HT PHOTO Dibakar Banerjee