Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Brunch
COOLER ANSWERS
TO COOL QUESTIONS
On an island, you’d want to be marooned with Kareena Kapoor Woh meri favourite hai
If you woke up one day and found that you are bald, you would
Rush to Sanjay Leela Bhansali sir and request him to remake Bajirao Mastani with me!
A quote by a star you wish you had shared
Shah Rukh Khan’s quote: “Don’t become a philosopher before you become rich” I can relate to Shah Rukh sir’s journey He made a niche for himself despite being an outsider He is also one of the wittiest, smartest and most charming actors
Describe your relationship with your smartphone
We are mutually addicted to each other!
Would you rather be world famous and die young or be anonymous and live long?
I would rather be anonymous and live long Travelling the world is my passion I need time to travel with a laugh, “In school the girls were made to sit separately from the boys Once, when I was in the eighth standard, I was told to share a desk with a girl for a day as a punishment I’d have liked that punishment for the year”
Are girls chasing you now? I ask After a moment’s hesitation, he admits, “I am flattered with all the female adulation I get” He qualifies it with, “But I get a lot of male adulation too Guys love my films as friendship is often the core theme”
I remind him of when Sara Ali Khan had gushed over him on the TV show, Koffee With Karan and Aaryan’s diplomatic side comes into play “Ananya, Sara, and another actor too spoke highly about me on the show All I want to say is I’m flattered” I try to engage him in a conversation about Sara and say it must be a double bonus to work with her and director Imtiaz Ali in Love Aajkal (2020) But he shifts focus and lavishes praise on Imtiaz Ali: “He has changed my thinking process both in terms of acting and philosophy I love him; he is just amazing”
Aaryan maintains that he is a one-woman man “I don’t believe in infidelity,” he says His loyalty to friends in his bromance films has been intense and he says he is also a very steadfast friend, emphasising, “Loyalty in friendship is integral to my personality”
THE BROMANCE BOND
Aaryan is extremely friendly with director Luv Ranjan with whom he has done four films He chuckles, “We are Sonu-titu in each other’s lives If we hear a song somewhere that carries an emotion akin to
‘Tera yaar hoon main,’ we call each other and listen to the song together” Ranjan has moved onto Ranbir Kapoor for his next film, but Aaryan just shrugs “It depends on the demands of the script,” he says “If we don’t do a project together it doesn’t mean there is a strained relationship He has given me a lot and we have created marvellous work together I’m sure we’ll do a lot of work together in the future too”
If Ranjan has expanded his horizons, so has Aaryan The actor has several major films backed by established filmmakers on hand Aaryan’s had a long apprenticeship in the Bollywood celebrity industrial complex Despite his debut film
Pyar Ka Punchnama being a sleeper hit, he didn’t become a household name It took him eight years before he finally emerged a star with
Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety (2018) He surmounted the difficult phases with self possession and self belief “From the onset of my career I had the attitude that if the audience is not able to comprehend my talent, it’s their loss I know I have it in me to make it as an actor I was asked to
Kartik Aaryan’s fun side!
“I’VE GROWN WINGS, BUT IN PRIVATE APNE MEIN KHUSH HOTA
REHTA HOON”
audition for films even after my first hit but I never lost heart, I had drive And my passion overrode my doubts”
BALANCE SHEET ANALYSIS
In 2019, two more of his outings have been money-spinners But Aaryan maintains that living the high threadcount life has not unhinged him “I speak and behave as I did earlier,” he avers That’s not possible, I reason He offers a telling insight: “I’ve grown wings, but in private Apne mein khush hota rehta hoon”
Enjoy your success, I exhort He is cautious “I don’t want to lose my balance I don’t want to get carried away because all I had dreamed of is happening to me I love acting, I love dancing I love playing characters I value my success because I have achieved it after a long time and after a lot of hard work Now that I have come so far, I am going to do my best to hold onto it”
Aaryan’s voice pulses with fervour For now, he’s in a happy place