Tamasha is your third film with Deepika Padukone. How was the experience this time?
I learnt a lot working with Deepika. We began with Bachna Ae Haseena which was the second film in both our careers, and then we did Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani which was a big hit. To see her grow as an actor to this extent is really heart-warming, encouraging and inspiring. For me, Tamasha is very special because of our team – it’s also my second film with director Imtiaz Ali after Rockstar, my second film with producer Sajid Nadiadwala after Anjaana Anjaani, and my eleventh film with co-producer Siddharth Roy Kapur!
Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani was a blockbuster. Do you think Deepika is your lucky charm?
It is not fair to label anyone as a lucky charm. Deepika has worked very dedicatedly to be in her position. I hope her luck works on me and not mine on her.
Your chemistry with Deepika is well-liked. What do you feel?
It’s very good. It depends on Tamasha – if the film becomes successful, then everyone will be happy to see us together.
Since your last two films haven’t done well, are you feeling the pressure that this film should succeed?
There is less pressure because we have talented people like Deepika and Imtiaz on board. Imtiaz always brings the best in me and so does Deepika. Imtiaz’s Rockstar taught me a lot and fetched me a lot of success and awards.
What are your plans for September 28, your birthday?
I am working on my birthday and it’s great. It’s a day which makes me sad. I have been told that you should feel special on that day but it has never met those expectations. Hence it is better to be working on that day.
You will be shooting in London for Karan Johar’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil on your birthday; will you be visiting Katrina Kaif’s family?
I have visited them for lunches on many occasions and won’t be going there especially for my birthday.
‘The film has to be special’
With a string of hits in the past, there are a lot of expectations from Deepika Padukone. At the film’s trailer launch, Deepika explained, “We don’t want to come together in a film for the heck of it. We have done films before and they have done well because they were good films. We want the film to be special for us to come together.” There is obviously a lot of affection between the two. Deepika spoke of “loving Ranbir in Barfi” and when asked what she would give him on his birthday on September 28, she laughed, “I think he has everything. All I can give him is good wishes, love and happiness.” Deepika however was smart enough not to get drawn into a comparison of her chemistry with Ranbir Kapoor and her rumoured current beau Ranveer Singh. “It depends on the kind of film and roles we do and it’s also in the hands of the director to bring out the best in us. There is a difference in the chemistry between Ranbir and me and Ranveer Singh’s chemistry with me,” she said.
Director speaks
Imtiaz Ali’s earlier films like Jab We Met, Rockstar and Highway had an underlying message. The same seems to be the case with Tamasha. The Ranbir Kapoor-Deepika Padukone starrer comes with an intriguing tagline – ‘Why always the same story?’. The director explained, “Sometimes, the same kind of events occur in your life so you blame circumstances and say ‘This is how life is.’ You never become who you are really as an individual. The same story repeats for you unless you take control of your life. You change your life’s story by saying that you’re not enjoying it and that you’ll make your own endings in life. That’s when a different kind of Tamasha takes place.”
Imtiaz is happy that he has actors of the calibre of Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone to translate his idea on screen. “The way I had envisioned each scene finally turned out to be different because of these two talented actors. I’m convinced about the fact that I’ve never worked with actors as good as them,” he said.