Aamir Khan on Laal Singh Chaddha: ‘To get the innocence was very difficult after you’ve been through life so much’
Aamir Khan on Laal Singh Chaddha: ‘To get the innocence was very difficult after you’ve been through life so much’
Aamir Khan returns to the celluloid after four years. His last theatrical release, Thugs of Hindostan, was a period saga. He goes back in time for Laal Singh Chaddha too, albeit taking inspiration from the West in the form of the 1994 classic Forrest Gump. As always, a nervous energy drives him to go the extra mile to promote his film and be as candid and cerebral during film promotions.
In an exclusive interview with Firstpost, the Superstar gets candid about how he prepped for the role of Laal Singh Chaddha, what fascinated him about the timeless Forrest Gump, and how Kareena Kapoor Khan has evolved as an actor.
What was your prep like for the role of Laal Singh Chaddha?
Actually for this character, I first had to grow a beard for the physicality, but getting into the mind of the character was the main job. I’m 57 now, when we were shooting, it has been four years, I was in my 50s only. But I’m playing an 18-year old and then a 20-year old. We see this character in different age groups, so to get that innocence was very difficult after you’ve been through life so much (smiles). So that was my biggest challenge.
In Secret Superstar, we saw the bond between a mother and a daughter, and in Laal Singh Chaddha, we see the bond between a mother and a son. Do you think Advait Chandan understands these emotions well as a filmmaker?
I hope so (Laughs). No I think he does. He really did a very good job in Secret Superstar. And to be honest, he has done a very good job in Laal Singh Chaddha. Today, when we see the film that is written by Atul Kulkarni, Advait has made the film that we set out to make, and that’s a very big achievement for any director, that you have made what you wanted to, because that’s very difficult (Smiles). And I think Advait and I, and the entire team is very happy that we have made the film that we wanted to make. Now we are waiting to see whether the audience likes the film or not.
What was it about Forrest Gump that fascinated you as an actor that you decided to remake it?
I really liked the innocence of the character that was very powerful. We often see physical strength of heroes in our films, we are able to fight 10,20, 100 people. Or, we have moral strength when we fight against injustice. So our heroes normally have moral or physical strength. Here’s a hero whose strength is innocence but he never uses it as his strength. That is the quality of an innocent person. When you meet someone innocent, we often want to help him so that he doesn’t falter, so that innocence also has a remarkable strength. I saw that in this character and I wanted the people of India also experience that.
What about your character in another Advait Chandan film, Secret Superstar?
Shakti Kumar is not innocent at all (Smiles).
Right from 3 idiots to Talaash to now Laal Singh Chaddha, how much do you feel Kareena Kapoor has evolved as an actor?
I think she’s just getting better and better in what she does. She just gets into the skin of the character, she becomes that. And if you ask me, actually this is one of her best performances, if I start looking at her as a fan. I’ve seen her in 3 idiots, Talaash was a fantastic performance of hers, but personally, I would rate Laal Singh Chaddha as one of her best because it’s also a very demanding performance, very tricky and a very thin line performance. It’s a different role.
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