Smile, life's just begun!
Four unfruitful years in Bollywood with four films in the cans! Model-turned-actor Aryan Vaid waited and watched for a miracle to happen. And it did! Along came the B grade film Market making it his first film and hit one to boot. Thus, the actor had notched his first success. Fighter that he is, Aryan never did lose hope. He tried and tried till he succeeded. Although Market was a small budget flick, many filmmakers noticed him. And film offers began coming his way, albeit small ones. But Market was a stepping-stone to bigger budgets and better films. Last month Aryan got wet and wild with beautiful women in "hot" flicks like Chahat Ek Nasha and Fun. Well, they received a lukewarm response. But he seemed to be lapped by fans. We met him for his response.
So, Aryan, you seem to be the king of bold cinema – what with movies like Market, Fun, Chahat Ek Nasha etc.
(Laughs) Well, if you put it that way – I guess I am. But seriously, I think actors like me who are struggling to make it don't have much choice when it comes to offers. Ditto for actors like Shawar Ali, Emraan Hashmi and others of our ilk. We really don't have an option when it comes to picking films or setting trends. So we have to make do with whatever we get and then aim higher from there. We do films that are offered to us and then, sadly, all these films follow a certain pattern. You see, today, it's the heroines who matter more. Posters of Julie had Neha's bare back all over them and no mention of Priyanshu. So, that's the way life is out here.
Chahat... and Fun were bold films with explicit scenes. How comfortable are you with this exposing trend?
Chahat wasn't exactly a 'bold' film. Of course, you wouldn't think so after watching the promos, which showed only the kisses and the hot song I did with Preeti. Though there are certainly some very hot scenes in the film we didn't have a sensuous hot script. The film was more a pleasant, cute love story that was handled very aesthetically. In Chahat... I was cast as a music industry czar while Preeti and Manisha played a rising pop star and fading singer, respectively. It was a very interesting love triangle. Working with both of them was great fun for I got along well with them. Fun, on the other hand, was a bold subject, a husband-swapping angle.
After being linked up with Manisha Koirala during Market, was it difficult working with her again?
It was strange being linked with Manisha. There was no truth at all in the story. I felt let down by the press because they presented it in such a manner that it looked as if I was after Manisha. We are friends and always went out in a group. We are both thorough professionals and believe in doing our job regardless of any loose talk. I don't let anything get in the way of my work, and that applies to Manisha too. Although I don't deny that we share a great chemistry on screen, off it we are just friends – nothing more. Working with Manisha was just great.
What are your other projects?
I have Tanuja Chandra's Filmstar where I play an alcoholic husband and a thriller Naam Gum Jayega with Dia Mirza. I have also signed three other films, with directors Manoj Aggarwal, Depak Tijori and a new director.
Market gave you a lease of life after four struggling years.
Market worked for me in two ways. One, the movie did well and I always felt that the first movie of an actor should be a success. I know Market wasn't a Kaho Naa Pyar Hai but it definitely was an above average grosser. It was a three-and-a-half-crore film and raked in about seven crores in two weeks. I admit that it worked due to the sleaze factor. I don't know what people expected, but it was a hard-hitting realistic film. I had a small role in the film but I didn't think it would turn out to be that small (laughs). It helped nevertheless. I had two good scenes and people noticed that I had a good personality, a good voice and talent. So it worked for me. At least Market wasn't an embarrassment like some movies are. It starred Manisha Koirala in it, so that was one plus point there. After Market my career has changed for the good.
But Market wasn't the first film you had signed. What happened to all your other films?
There were almost half a dozen films that I signed and shot for but as luck would have it, each and every one of them was either delayed or shelved for various reasons. First I did a big film for Jhamu Sugand, System with Sonali Bendre, which was 80% complete but got shelved. The same with another big film i.e. Ripples Entertainment's Saazish with Milind Soman, Riya Sen. We shot for the entire film but then there was a tiff between the producers and they wound up their operations. Another film Heartbeat, didn't take off while Makrand Deshpande's Dannav has been complete for the past two years but hasn't yet released. All this has been very disappointing for me. Signing movies, getting ones hopes up and then see them crashing down. I don't think any newcomer should go through such tough times.
Other than plenty of heartache there was also no payment. Isn't it?
I got a sum for Saazish but I was never paid a rupee for either System or Heartbeat. I signed them after I won the Mr. India title. Now, in hindsight, Heartbeat looks like a bad career move for it was a small film with a new director but back then I was pumped up and dying to act. If released there was a good chance that it would have flopped. Ditto for System, which is about Bihar politics. I think films should be completed in a short span of time or else it's tough to keep up with the changing trends. Saazish will be a good film, if it ever releases, for it's a good suspense thriller. At least with Market I had a consolation that it was a decent role, a decent film, a decent release and a hit. So I didn't have the tag of being a jinx.
With so many films being shelved, one is bound to be disillusioned. Did it ever make you desperate enough to do any film your way?
If I was that desperate then I would have signed any of the 50 films offered to me in the four years of my struggle. They were offering me big money. I never had goals set on the amount of money I wanted to make. Fortunately, I had my ramp shows to keep me going. I'd do a show and then come and shoot for a film for free. I'd earn two to three lakhs a month in my ramp shows. So, both my creative as well as financial fronts were taken care of. A newcomer comes with plenty of enthusiasm, wants to find his bearings and is not distracted by the politics going on in the industry. He's like a clean slate with a fresh approach to the business and actually believes that only talent will work and nothing else. I thought so too. But what hurt the most was that I went through sleepless nights convinced that I'd never have a release. After four of my films not seeing a release, I wondered what more was left to hope for in life. I became that morose. It was a terrible phase. I started questioning my own destiny. I thought there were some hurdles in the way to realizing things. Maybe I wasn't destined to be an actor. Maybe I should just ditch the whole idea and go to America. You see, I had modeling offers from there. But as destiny would have it Market happened and now I am the "king" of bold cinema (laughs). I'm happy and that's all that matters!
Bollywood
Anupamaa
