A shift in my personality is visible: Arjun

After having dabbled in various genres ranging from romance to action films, Arjun Kapoor has stepped into a new genre with the Rajkumar Gupta’s, India’s Most Wanted (IMW). In this film, which is based on true events, he plays an intelligence officer. Apart from four diverse films in the pipeline, this one will showcase him a new avatar. “It’s about unsung heroes that live around us and who we don’t even know about. It is a topical subject.” says Arjun, who is currently shooting for the film. IMW also marks his first collaboration with the film-maker of Raid fame. “He has imagined me in a way, which no other director has done till date. A director can change your perspective about yourself and the audiences if he gets it right,” adds the actor, who will soon start promoting Namaste England.

GAMECHANGING ROLE

If his role in IMW is unique, does Arjun consider it to be a potential game-changer? “Every film that I signed had a different reason. Sometimes, you do it for the director, sometimes for the cast or for the genre because you’ve never attempted that before, and sometimes, it’s the kind of film you always wanted to watch on the big screen,” he says.

Other than tapping into a different domain on screen, Arjun seems to be happier in his personal space as well. Prod him about a noticeable shift in his personality, and he says, “The warmth that I’ve got from people has allowed me to settle down. The ambition is to make entertaining films. You feel responsible. Besides, I am the same person. Things happened in my life just when I became an actor. I’d lost my world [when his mother Mona Kapoor passed away]. The biggest high and low in my life happened around the same time, and so, the success seemed irrelevant. I was 25 and didn’t really have a perspective. I had to become emotionally independent. I’d lived with my mother all my life after my parents separated, although dad was always there. But I dealt with things in a matured way. Sometimes, you are sorted in your head, but that doesn’t translate into your behaviour. It was the phase, but my work kept me going. Also, eventually, you come out of your shell.”

DON’T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER

He adds that sometimes people wondered if he was reserved and quiet. “If you interact with me for an hour, you’ll realise I am not that person. Most people meet you for a moment and make up their minds about you. I feel people harshly judge you in the beginning. ‘Yeh ukhada hua hai, attitude hai — jo mera kabhi tha nahi aur na abhi hai’,” says Arjun, adding that he is calmer now. The 2 States (2014) actor says that even when an actor hails from the industry, they have their own struggles. “I never went out looking for sympathy. I dealt with it on my own. My personality shift is visible now because I am more at ease with my profession and the audience has kept me here. I knew a lot of people didn’t expect me to survive. They felt I am a flash in the pan. They still do, which is not bad because I love being the underdog and redefining the odds. I’m sure some people were surprised at how the audience liked me because I am the anti-thesis to chocolate boy. And I take great pride in it,” Arjun signs off. pooja.sharma@htlive.com

I’d lived with my mother all my life after my parents separated... Sometimes, you are sorted in your head, but that doesn’t translate into your behaviour. ARJUN KAPOOR, ACTOR

PHOTO: ATUL KASBEKAR