Ayushmann Is Happy To Be Doing Relevant Films

Ayushmann Khurrana is  constantly looking for scripts that challenge him. With Article 15, Anubhav Sinha’s  stunning disturbing  exposition  on  the notorious  caste system  the  young thinking actor seems to have  arrived at a stage in his career where there  is no turning back.

 He  laughs, “I guess I am now identified  with a relevant  kind of cinema,and that’s  a place I enjoy occupying. You  see,  when  I started  doing cinema  I  was  not a stranger to socio-political relevances  in  my work. I had done theatre , serious  issue-based theatre, before films. So doing  cinema  like Vicky Donor, Shubh Mangal Savdhan ,Badhai Ho and  Article 15 was a natural progression from one  medium  to  another.”

Was  Ayushmann shocked and  surprised by the  strong reactions to  Article 15?

“Not really, we  expected the  film to kick up a controversy.  We knew it would  ruffle feathers. The caste system  is  something  that  has bothered me  for a long time.Inequality  in society is a subject that cinema has  never dealt with  fairly. It’s always been hush-hush. Anubhav Sir brought  it out  into the open.,” says Ayushmann.

 He wouldn’t mind doing films with songs and dances in them, though. “I mean, we’ve a long tradition of singing and dancing to express emotions. I am doing a  film Dream Girl where  I play a heterosexual man  who is equally  comfortable in men’s and women’s clothes. It  harks  back to the  traditional  Ram Leela staged in rural areas. Even today men play both male and female roles in these  performances. A film like this will have music nicely fitting in,even when the subject is authentic and  the  treatment is  rooted to authenticity.”

Ayushamnn who is  an accomplished in  real life reveals there were  musical plans  for  Article 15. “We had recorded songs for Article  15. In fact there was  a romantic track for my  girlfriend in the film(played by Isha Talwar) . But somehow it seemed  to distract.  Anubhav Sir felt  songs  couldn’t fit in. But I don’t think music and realistic cinema are  mutually exclusive. Badhai Ho was  another  very real film of mine. It had singing and dancing.”

 Ayushmann’s  romance with realism will continue in  his forthcoming films.  “In Bala I play a young man who goes bald. It can be a terrible  nightmare    for someone afflicted with baldness.”