‘I got into a comfort zone’

Ayushmann Khurrana says he has learnt his lesson from his last two duds; adds his next projects are vastly different from what he has done so far

After making a promising debut with Vicky Donor in 2012, Ayushmann Khurrana won several accolades for his performance. For a song — ‘Paani da rang’ — he sung for the same film, he even earned a top award. But the next few projects that Ayushmann was seen in — Nautanki Saala (2013) and Bewakoofiyaan — didn’t work as well. Here, the actor talks about learning from his mistakes, stepping out of his comfort zone with his upcoming movies and taking his singing career more seriously.

You had a great start and then your next two films didn’t do well. What’s the plan ahead?

After my debut, I got into a comfort zone. But now, I am venturing out of it. My characters in the last two films were not well etched, and I have learnt from them. Now, I am just looking forward to my upcoming films… they are very different from what

I have done so far.

Several other actors made their debuts around the same time you did. Do you see them as competition?

They are all doing great, but I have carved a niche for myself in the industry. There are no actor-singers in Bollywood, and there is no competition in the zone that I am in.

You were going to form a band. What is the progress on that front?

We are still working on it.

I have carved a niche for myself... There are no actor-singers in Bollywood. — Ayushmann Khurrana, actor-singer

The names of the other band members should be announced by next month; but my friend Rochak Kohli will always be part of it.

Tell us about your new single…

The track is called ‘Mitti di khusboo’ and, technically, this is my first independent single, because ‘O heeriya’ was more like a song I sang for a brand I was endorsing. The song is the number one track on iTunes right now, so I’m glad.