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EXCLUSIVE! Vikrant Massey on on ‘Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan' & Work-Life Balance: ‘I aspire to work for eight-hours a day, but I must reduce my fee'
Vikrant Massey will be seen in Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan with debutant actor Shanaya Kapoor. In an interview with Firstpost, Vikrant talks on how he chooses his roles, the thought that goes behind it, audience evolving and how he too is surprised as in the age of Animal and Jawan how his film 12th Fail resonated with the audiences.
WATCH the full interview with Vikrant Massey and Shanaya Kapoor here:
Read the edited excerpts from the interview with Vikrant Massey:
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How do you choose your roles?
There are quite a lot of things actually. There are so many permutations and combinations that go behind you choosing a role. But I think that right at the core of it lies the question as to what that story evokes within me. I like Shanaya Kapoor (co-star) who also said this very beautifully. Someone else asked her what are your criteria to sort of choose a script or probably how do you approach it.
So she said that you know she reads the first reading that she always does as an audience and I do the same. The first thing I do is that I don't take narrations, I hate the narrations, I always insist on reading what will be shot eventually. I read it as an audience, if it is evoking what it is ought to, if it's ought to make me laugh, does it make me laugh, if it's ought to make me cry, does it make me cry, does it evoke that sense and then comes the other combination which is like have I done this before as an actor? Does this ring a bell with me? Is this a story that I actually want to tell?
Is this something that makes me feel accomplished or does it fill me with a sense of challenge as an actor? And then also comes the other part, which is the people who are collaborating, who you will be collaborating with on that film, whether it is the actors, the directors and the whole team. I mean, do I really want to work with that director or that actor, you know, or that technician? So quite a lot of other permutations. It begins with the story, then the rest follows.
A still from 'Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan'
Story is the hero of a movie. But so many Bollywood movies are not doing too well other than a 12th Fail, Jawan and Pathaan. Why do you think it isn't working, especially the masala movies? Do you think the audience is changing, and has evolved a lot over a period of time?
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Of course. Yes. I think they have and very rapidly. The understanding of cinema is also partially because of our own exposure to international cinema. I think with the advent of satellite television, the exposure to international cinema has exploded beyond our own imagination. For example, there are people in my team, in my staff rather, who never in their life before the advent of OTT were ever interested in watching a Hollywood film. But today because of access to regional cinema and Hollywood films on their mobile phones, they are able to watch everything in the language of their choice. So, they've seen all the avenger movies.
They have seen all the superhero movies in the language of their choice. And so tomorrow when I go out and make a film, for example, if it's an action film, the action has to be at par with what they are seeing. And if I'm not doing the action right, they pull me up saying we have messed it up. And we've seen that happen in the past. So, our exposure has really widened our own horizons. We see things in a very different light, and as I said, it's changing very rapidly. Something that and that's the nature of life today if you actually see and by the time you probably prepare yourself to adapt to a trend, by the time you have adapted to that trend, that trend is redundant.
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'Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan'
But there is no trend…
I mean, there are certain trends, like, for example, Certain things were doing very well. And everyone wants to copy paste it. But that doesn't happen; it needs to have some originality.
The first effect is the first effect. Do you think anybody can make another 12th Fail?
That's very generous of you to say that, but I think I think cinema not just today, if we if we try sort of decoding cinema, we've had trends or know, seven on 10 films are action films because action films started and then the small town and inclusivity in cinema became popular probably because people started resonating with it.
Back when I was a part of television, one of Ekta Kapoor show worked. Everybody wanted to replicate that. I am also surprised that in times of Animal and Jawan, how did my movie do well.
There is an audience for everything. Like what Chhaava did, what Stree did, what Sitaare Zameen Par is doing right now. What SRK's Jawan and Pathaan did, but that's Shah Rukh Khan who is at a different level.
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Nobody knows what actually is working. Anybody who claims to know is probably taking you for a ride. Actually, nobody knows why what's working, why? Similarly, I don't know, but there is hope. You hope to make a good film with all sincerity, quality cinema, maybe sort of tell a story which represents the common man, maybe the common man wants to see himself or herself there on the screen. You can only go out there with all sincerity to tell a good story, to engage the audiences, to probably be the voice of the voiceless.
A still from 'Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan'
What do you have to say about this eight-hour shift put forward by Deepika Padukone**? Do you think it's going to work as everybody needs time to rejuvenate?**
I hope it does. I aspire to do something like that very soon.
I remember one of your social media posts went viral saying that I'm taking a break and they thought you are taking a retirement. Everybody said, what's going to happen?
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People misconstrued it as retirement. People still ask the same question… They think a break is retirement. And I still feel work life balance is very, very important. I had put that tweet out because I wanted to go back home and spend some time with my kid and my wife and my family. And, it is imperative that we go back home and recalibrate, not just as actors, as people. I think we are all running at such speeds. I don't know for what, but the idea is to sort of just go ground yourself and recalibrate yourself, find your centre again, and I think that only happens with family.
And coming back to your question, eight-hour shifts, I want to do that myself. And I hope to achieve that. Maybe in a couple of years…I want to go out and say, we can collaborate, but I would only work for eight hours. But at the same time, it should be a choice. And if my producer cannot accommodate that because there are also a lot of other things involved. Money plays a very important role and I will have to reduce my fees as I will be working for eight hours.
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If I cannot give my producer twelve hours a day, I cannot go out there and not reduce my fee. I ought to reduce my fee. It's a give and take. Right? So, yes, I think it definitely works. And as a young mother, I think Deepika truly deserves it!
WATCH the trailer of 'Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan' here:
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