He's done it, if facts and figures matter in the Hindi film arithmetic - and they do! Garam Masala took a whopper opening trouncing Salman Khan's Kyon Ki.... In a year that saw Aamir Khan falter, Shah Rukh Khan meet with failure and Salman share his successes with other heroes, Akshay has notched up two Akshay-centric hits in Waqt and Garam Masala, with Deewane Huye Paagal all set to reprise their success.
So are the Khans set to eat humble Kumar pie? Time will tell. In a frank chat, Akki unwinds on matters professional and personal.
You seem to have suddenly acquired the image of a comic hero.
Yeah. What can I do? After Garam Masala and Deewane Huye Paagal someone actually asked me if I was comfortable with the title of 'Comedy King' - and DHP isn't even a comedy in the strict sense of the term! So I told him that my last hit before Garam Masala was Waqt - A Race Against Time. Did that make me a Tragedy King? Earlier too I have gone through phases when I was called a wooden actor, a Khiladi, an action hero and so on.
Your career has had three clear phases, the first when you were an action star but considered at best an adequate actor, the second stage of flops when you were written off, and then the stage that began with Hera Pheri when they all woke up to your acting skills. Today, would you say that you are in a fourth stage that is a blend of action and acting, with comedy thrown in?
Honestly, I do not think that I have had just one bleak phase! There have been at least four phases where I have been down. I remember that I was one of two heroes in a film and when we were on outdoor location he was given a suite and I got a plain room! But looking back, it was very natural, I guess.
But where do you go now as star and actor?
I just don't want to repeat myself. I want each successive film to shade Akshay Kumar in a completely different colour.
Frankly I am tired of doing both comedy and romance. I want to do something completely different now and keep experimenting. I am amazed at what heroes can get to do in Hollywood. In Raging Bull, the hero even beats his wife, brother and relatives, because he is a boxer and a powerful man. Which hero would dare to take up such roles here?
You are rock-steady while superstars can come and go. Do you want to join the superstar league?
I don't allow such things to worry me. But yes, I am greedy for more hits, better work and greater respect and admiration.
You are now perceived as the biggest threat to the Khan supremacy.
(Shrugs) The media will write what it wants to. These things do not affect me. If I have two flops tomorrow they will pull me down. That said, I don't think that names like Khans, Khannas or Kumars have a monopoly on top positions here.
Twinkle, your wife, has quit films and is doing business. Do you discuss films - or her business - with her?
Very rarely. I would like to make a request - please keep my family out of this interview. No one likes to discuss personal aspects, if you could appreciate that.
Not even a word about your celebrity in-laws?
Please! I request you to stick to questions about my work and me.
You have never been a media favourite. Has this rankled, like being called teakwood earlier, or being labelled a flop star, or whatever, apart from the hype over your relationships?
I think that the media so obviously likes me, which is why they keeps writing so much about me! It's fine with me - because at the end of the day I get to take the paycheck home! And do I look like a guy who gets easily rankled? I am a chilled out.
Finally, how do you remain healthy and calm through the stressful life of a top star?
I have a simple work-home-movies-workouts lifestyle. I do one hour of workouts daily, no matter what. I eat everything, provided it is home food, so I'm not even stressed about whether I am eating properly! I watch endless movies. My career's fine, I have got a great family! So what is left to give a man stress?
comment:
p_commentcount