Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani stars spill all

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

The stars of the glossy, glamour-drenched Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani remind me of that cool gang in elite schools: everybody wants to be a part of the coveted club, but you are never sure if you are fabulous enough to make the classy cut.

Bollywood heartthrob Ranbir Kapoor, who plays the lead role in the film, out today, naturally assumes the role of gang leader. Clad in jeans and a leather jacket, he took charge of the press junket in Dubai earlier this month almost immediately and regaled everyone with the fun times they had while shooting for director Ayaan Mukherjee’s venture, calling the experience a “fun road trip”.

Meanwhile, even our art-house favourite Kalki Koechlin seems to have spruced up after spending time in such revered company. Dressed in a white Gaurav Gupta gown, curls bobbed in the usually bohemian actress’s hair as they recounted tales from the set.

“All Kalki did was jump into ponds and lakes. One minute you are talking to her and the next, she would strip down and simply jump into the lake and be treading water,” said Kapoor, as Koechlin punched him playfully on his arm.

The third wheel, rising star Aditya Roy Kapur, was shabby in a carefully careless way and stupendously confident. Who else would openly admit that they had failed their grade 6 examination and repeated a year in school? Rounding out the gang was Bollywood’s It girl Deepika Padukone - sadly not a part of this entourage’s trip due to her shooting commitments in Mumbai — who told tabloid! over the telephone that she found a life-long friend in her ex-lover Kapoor. Who said friendships aren’t possible in the fickle world of Bollywood?

The film re-unites ex-lovers Kapoor and Padukone (Kapoor says it’s never a bad idea to work with ex-girlfriends as long as both parties have closure). The story is more or less about four friends who go on a fabulous road trip and discover life and love. This romantic drama also gave Kapoor the opportunity to dance with his teenage crush and dancing legend, Madhuri Dixit. Kapoor says he will be eternally grateful to Karan Johar, producer of YJHD, for that wonderful idea.

It’s not everyday that Dubai is treated to a cast who are game for anything. Doing away with the traditional interview format, we introduced the Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani stars to tabloid!’s Bollywood bowl - a collection of often random but always probing questions that they themselves had to select and ask.

“Is that a box of chocolates? I would love some sugar right now,” said Kapoor as soon as he saw our golden tray. As the concept was explained to him, he was happy to play along, while any apprehensions were put to rest when Koechlin decided to mix it up a bit.

“Why don’t we pick a chit for the other person? That way it will be more fun. Ready, set, go,” said the actress. Excerpts from our chat:

Aditya Roy Kapur picks a question from the golden tray for Ranbir Kapoor:

What’s the best part about press junkets?

Ranbir Kapoor: The best part about press junkets is that you can speak junk. Sometimes, certain journalists don’t care about what they are asking and that’s boring. So we give them the most clichéd, stupid answers. I love it when fans write in with their questions, they care about what they are asking and genuinely care about our responses.

Aditya Roy Kapur pitches in: Sometimes even the interviewer spaces out. They ask you about how it was to work with Ranbir and then randomly ask about our Diwali plans.

Ranbir Kapoor picks a question from the golden tray for Kalki Koechlin

Who is your closest friend in Bollywood?

Kalki Koechlin: I have a real boring answer for this one. It’s my husband Anurag [Kashyap].

Ranbir Kapoor jumps in: Come on, we are your friends now.

Kalki Koechlin: I am good friends with these two now but now that the film is over, I am sure they won’t even call. This guy [Ranbir Kapoor] is super famous and this guy [Aditya Roy Kapur] is almost famous. I do all art films, you see. Come to think of it, I am friends with almost all my directors like Zoya Akhtar and Dibanker Bannerjee.

Ranbir Kapoor jumps in: Clearly, not the director of Ek Thi Dayaan. [Kalki Koechlin’s latest horror project directed by Kanan Iyer that was a box-office dud]

Kalki Koechin: I am not so close to him, he belongs to another generation. Now Ranbir, stop dragging me into controversies.

Kalki Koechlin picks a question for Aditya Roy Kapur.

If you weren’t doing this what would you be most likely be doing?

Aditya Roy Kapur: I will be vegetating on the couch or bowling left arm deliveries for the Indian cricket team. Sreesanth [controversial Indian bowler who was embroiled in an IPL corruption scandal at the time of this interview] is in big trouble.

Aditya Roy Kapur picks a question for Ranbir Kapoor.

What colour is your underwear today?

Ranbir Kapoor: Wait, let me check.

Aditya Roy Kapur: I was joking. The question is what song would you want to play at your funeral?

Ranbir Kapoor: Kisi ki muskurahaton pe ho nisar, Kisi ka dard mil sake to le udhaar, Kisi ke waaste ho tere dil mein pyaar, Jeena isi ka naam hai [This was an iconic song sung by his grandfather Raj Kapoor in the 1959 film Anari which roughly means ‘life is all about loving people and sharing their sorrows’.]

# Ranbir Kapoor picks a question from the golden tray for Kalki Koechlin

Who was your partner in crime when you did your wildest thing in your life?

Kalki Koechlin: Aditya Roy Kapur was that person. He forced me to jump into freezing cold water while shooting for Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani. I was reluctant to jump in but he kept goading me. Finally, we both plunged into that freezing water and came out like frozen chickens. We were pink after the blood just rushed into our bodies. But we survived.

# Ranbir Kapoor picks a question from the golden tray for Aditya Roy Kapur

Apart from your own, which song do you like the most?

ARK: I don’t remember names but I love the song that featured Isha Koppikar from the film Company.

#Aditya Roy Kapur picks a question from the golden tray for Ranbir Kapoor

What were you doing last night at 10pm, Ranbir?

Ranbir Kapoor: I was with Aditya Roy Kapur. We were together at B R Studios. Adi was asking me what we were going to do in Dubai and what we could do at night. I told him it’s a fun city and all that we can and cannot do.

#Aditya Roy Kapur picks a question from the golden tray for Kalki Koechlin

Do soulmates exist in real life or do they only exist in Bollywood films?

Kalki Koechlin: Soulmates and true love exists in your heart. If you believe in it, it works. If you don’t, then it doesn’t.

Ranbir Kapoor interrupts: So are you saying you don’t truly love your husband?

Kalki Koechlin: That wasn’t the question.

Ranbir Kapoor: That’s my question. Do you love your husband?

Kalki Koechlin: Yes

Ranbir Kapoor: It’s settled. Then you believe in soul-mates.

Kalki Koechlin: That’s what I said. It’s really complicated.

By Manjusha Radhakrishnan, Senior Reporter