Ayushmann Khurrana Quotes

I think I’ve evolved as an actor. My performance was appreciated. People are saying I am not a one-film wonder. That’s the best part of being in this film.

I’ve realised something: Either you have to be a superstar, or your script has to be one. So till the time I’m not a superstar, my scripts should do that job.

During my growing-up years in Chandigarh, or even in Mumbai, I’ve never come across nasty people. I’ve only heard of it but never seen the bad side of the film industry. Of course I was rejected many times in auditions. But I wouldn’t call that rude.

Experimentation is the most important thing today. Most young actors will not want to talk about the movies that have made money; they talk about the movies that have given them credibility.

After Vicky Donor, life is coming a full circle for me with this film. We are part of a progressive changing society. As young actors, the onus lies on us to choose subjects which must be talking points. Is our work of any value if we don't have an opinion on things?

In Darr, SRK says that his height is 5’9" or 5’10", so I wanted to be 5’9", at least. I used to pray to God every day, ki bhagwan meri height 5’9" kar do. My father is 5’5" and my mother is about the same. So my hopes were really meagre. And then, I grew to five-nine-and-a-half! I was over the moon. I always knew that I had the talent, but height was a bit of a gamble.

I was lucky to have him as my co-star. Just like Annu Kapoor, who was such a help in Vicky Donor, Kunal gave my character perspective and provided concentrated energy. Beyond that, I never have any expectations from life.

The male ego is so unnecessarily important in patriarchal societies. When a woman cannot conceive, everyone has something to tell her. When a guy can't get it up, it's shoved under the carpet. Sexual health is important to a relationship. In this film, the girl is in love with the guy and we establish the fact that their relationship goes beyond the sexual act. But the girl is emphatic that she wants to have sex.

If you have a mainstream actor attached to a subject like this, it reaches out to a wider audience. We want to reach out to people who believe in caste discrimination and if we are able to change the mindset of one person that will be the true victory for us.

As a person, I was always intrigued by the caste divide in the country. We have separate utensils for our domestic help, we do not share a meal with them or any of our staff. It is all deep rooted. It will take time to get rid of all this. We need to look within and then the conversation will be started. In rural areas the caste divide is very rampant, there are honour killings because of inter-caste alliances. We have depicted the situation as real as it could be in our film.

As an artist, I'm a constant learner of the craft of acting. I'm always looking out for films that make me better, that challenge my thinking, my beliefs and opens me up to absorb new things. Andhadhun has truly been one such film that has shaped me as an actor today. It taught me to challenge my inhibitions and showcase a completely different side to my craft that surprised me and also pleasantly surprised the audiences. I'm thankful to my director Sriram Raghavan for trusting me with his vision and thankful to the universe for giving me projects like this which I can be so proud of.

My acting career has been quite a ride. After Vicky Donor, I gave two-three unsuccessful films and that was a great learning curve. But Dum Laga Ke Haisha onwards it was cool. I learnt so much from all my films, successful or unsuccessful. You start believing in your intuition, your gut feeling. It ultimately depends on the choices you're taking. Everyone is talented today. Your career graph depends on the choice of scripts, nothing else.

I approach all my films as my first. If you carry that innocence, it reflects in the camera. I know I have become a star but I don't want to believe it. I want to be that simple, no fuss guy who approaches a film as if it is my first movie.

Karan gave me the landline number to his office when I met him. I should have taken a hint there and then. But I was so excited! I even planned exactly when I would make the call: sometime around 11:30am, so he’d be done with breakfast and available to talk.

When I was doing theatre in Chandigarh, I always played negative and aggressive characters, something that nobody could imagine me in. I did imagine myself to play a cop but maybe people did not. Anubhav Sinha sir also never expected me in the role of a tough cop. And that was the challenge. More than the character, it was the subject that intrigued me.