BANGALORE: Akshay Kumar's production Fugly is being talked about even before its release. The spunky, young film will hit theatres across India on June 13. Directed by one-time actor Kabir Sadanand and featuring a cast comprising primarily of fresh faces, Fugly is the debut film for Mohit Marwah, Kiara Advani, and Olympic medalist Vijender Singh, and also stars Arfi Lamba in his fourth film role.
The question on everybody’s lips is, of course, as the song from the film goes, Yeh fugly-fugly kya hai? At a recent press conference in Bangalore, Kabir explained that it’s all about “Fighting the ugly” in society.
The film tells the story of four fiends: Dev (Mohit), Devi (Kiara), Gaurav (Vijender), and Aditya (Arfi). A nasty incident lands these four carefree young friends smack dab in the middle of a ‘fugly’ reality, full of corruption, politics, and deceit, and their eyes are opened to what society is really like. With a strong message of youth empowerment, Fugly teaches us that a change in society is long overdue, and it’s up to the youth to do something about it. Nevertheless, thanks to the sensibilities of Kabir, the film maintains a perfect balance between a serious message and an entertaining presentation, without either trivialising the issue or detracting from the light, fun feel.
The cast shares a brilliant chemistry, both on and off sets, and speaks with great affection of one another. “People keep asking if we knew each other beforehand, because we get along so well,” says Kiara, “but none of us knew each other before we started work on the film.” Their closeness is no accident, however. “It’s important for the entire cast to be connected and involved in the whole process. We’re a team. Everyone has to take responsibility for the final result,” says Kabir, who took special measures to make sure his cast gets along. “In the beginning, I made them attend a workshop together, but I didn’t show up for about 15 days. They’d phone me, wondering where I am, and I’d question them about one another. When I saw that they were standing up for each other, that’s when I knew it was time to start shooting.”
Although work was taken seriously, and “taskmaster” Kabir demanded quality and dedication, there was always time for fun on the set. “Me and Kiara (sic) were the major pranksters,” says Arfi, although Kiara denies the claim.
“Once, we were mimicking Kabir and we didn't realise that we were being recorded, and Kabir saw it. The next day was a disaster for us, because all we heard all day was 'Oh, apni acting toh karte nahi, Kabir ki acting karte ho' (you don’t do your own acting, but you mimic Kabir).”
Alleged co-prankster Kiara is usually seen as a fashionista, but what people don’t know about her is that she’s also a fiercely intelligent and grounded person who believes strongly that poor education is the root of all the “fugly” problems in the society, and that both the quality and availability of education needs to be worked on. “My character is also strong and vocal but in a very different way - she’s a very different person, and it was interesting to try and understand her. But I’m very lucky,” she adds. “I got to prove my mettle as an actor in my first film.”
Vijender Singh, surprisingly soft-spoken for a man who makes a living off boxing, says he’s enjoying his experience in Bollywood although he’s keeping his boxing career alive, at the same time. “Acting is very different. In boxing, you have to just let go. In acting, it’s about holding back and controlling your emotions,” he explains, though he doesn't mind the novelty one bit. Although somewhat media-shy, he’s no stranger to being in the public eye, thanks to his successful sports career, and he handles the attention with poise. “I’m not much of a media person anyway. It was very difficult in the beginning,” he says, “but it’s been six years now… I’m used to it.”
Mohit, who’s closely related to the Anil Kapoor family, says he’s neither been helped nor hindered by the fact that he has a lot of family members in the business. “I’ve been treated as an individual. I was chosen for the role because of who I am, not who my family is,” he says. “It’s been a very exciting time. We’ve grown as people and as actors. My character was very different from me. The only common factor is that we’re both from Delhi. I had to shed my spontaneous, personality and become Dev… and I had fun doing it.” — Aneessa Madan