MR DEPENDABLE

Ajay is just a phone call away for family

Ajay Devgn has had a lot to deal with in the recent past. Besides shuttling from one shooting location to another owing to his back-to-back film commitments, the actor has also had to battle controversy spurred by the debacle of

Himmatwala. However, the unfazed Ajay seems to be braving it all much like the “Singham” he played on screen, but with a dignified silence.

The actor says that he believes in moving on. Ajay, who is currently shuttling between Mumbai and Bhopal where he is shooting for Prakash Jha’s Satyagraha, is yearning for a holiday. “The last time I took a vacation was after I had wrapped up Singham. There have been some short weekend breaks but I

I don’t look into the casting; it’s the director’s job. My advice is restricted to requesting my friends like Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt to make special appearances in my film

haven’t gone on a long holiday for a very long time now,” he says. But he knows how to work around things. “Since I cannot allot time for vacations, I get my wife and children to fly down to where I am shooting.”

Ajay and Kajol have been married for 15 years now. Ask him how do they manage to keep the romance alive, and the shy actor laughs and says, “I think Kajol will be able to answer that question better.” He continues, “I’m aware that actors are perceived as romantics due to their onscreen image. But sorry to burst the bubble — I am the most unromantic man. I’m not the candlelight dinner or a walk-on-the-beach sort of guy.” Ajay confesses that he is fiercely protective of his family. “My parents, children and my wife know that I’m just a phone call away.”

Even though he is an actor and a producer, Ajay makes it a point not to step into someone else’s territory during the making of a film. “I believe that every director has his own vision. I may be the producer but I ensure that I never interfere with my director’s work,” he says. Superstars are usually accused of having the final word when it comes to choosing the leading lady in their films. Does that hold true in his case? “To me, what matter the most are the script and the director of my film. I don’t look into the casting; it’s the director’s job. My advice is restricted to requesting my friends like Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt to make special appearances in my film.”

So how long do we have to wait before we see him and Kajol back on screen together? “Right now she is too busy with the kids. Our son Yug needs his mother to be with him. But if there is a good script that we both like, then maybe we’ll consider it. However, nothing concrete is in the pipeline,” he says.