Ayushmann Khurrana’s Hawaizaada is not a biopic but based on a true incident. He talks to Shrabasti Mallik about being selective and composing tunes for his movies
He has portrayed an image of an easy going and casual guy in his movies but up close and personal Ayushmann Khurrana is soft-spoken with a good sense of humour. The actor describes himself as “much laid-back and lazy” and although it may come as a contradiction, he also calls himself “a travel freak.” “I love to travel more than anything else in the world. It gives me a high,” he said.
The actor so far has done some interesting mix of movies with Vicky Donor, Nautanki Saala and Bewakoofiyaan. “I do selective work and movies which I can personally relate to. I did Nautanki Saala, which was about a struggling actor because I could relate to my own struggles, and Bewakoofiyaan was about recession and its effect on society. Scripts like these are hard to come by and therefore you see me so less,” he pointed out.
His next, Hawaizaada, is based on Shivkar Bapuji Talpade’s experiment on airplanes, which took place in 1895, eight years before the Wright brothers came up with maiden airplane. The movie is not a biopic but inspired by a true event, a little-known fact. Ayushmann and his director, Vibhu Puri, could find only the details of an 18-minute flight that Shivkar’s airplane Marutsakha undertook. “No written record was available on Shivkar’s personal life for us to refer to. We got in touch with their descendants in Mumbai but even they were unable to provide us an insight into his life. Therefore, it is not a biopic. We have tried our best to retell the story of his airplane which he built with the help of his guru Subbaraya Shastry,” shared the actor.
Due to lack of relevant information, the director weaved Shivkar’s fictional world including his love, nephew and his guru. However, the film doesn’t indulge in debate over the invention of the first plane. “It is a story of conspiracy. At that time we were a colony of the British. They did whatever was in their power to suppress facts but we did not delve into the politics of the affair so the debates are pointless,” said the actor.
Although Ayushmann calls himself a director’s actor, he made an effort to add his creative input to the movie. He said, “Since I had nothing to relate with the character, I insisted that I at least speak Marathi in the film because Shivkar was from Maharashtra. Generally I give myself up to the director but I do have a mind of my own and sometimes I pitch in an idea which I think would be appropriate.” For that, the actor has learnt the language and spoke Marathi with the entire cast and crew during the entire duration of the shoot to get the right accent.
Ever since he recorded Paani Da for Vicky Donor, he has been appreciated for his vocal skills and has had opportunities to sing in all his films. Has his singing given him an edgeIJ “Of course it has,” he said, “I believe it sets me apart from others. I have never looked at music as just a hobby. like acting, it is also my profession.” In Hawaizaada, the actor has also composed tunes and has sung Ghalib’s verse Dil-E-Nadan Tujhe Hua Kya Hai.
As an actor, he is unfazed by the box office business. He said, “A movie should do well, it should be able to tell a good story. The success of the movie cannot be determined by how much it earns at the box office. A good content and the actors are factors responsible for that.”
After this, he has Agra Ka Daabra and Dum lagake Haisha.