Nehal Parekh
‘I only watch my films once,’ said Arjun Rampal when he spoke exclusively to The Indian on one of the striking locations of Sydney.
Blue jacket, black jeans, unshaved beard and moustache, long hair, and a cool pair of sunglasses was the look of the evening for model turned actor Arjun Rampal who was here in Sydney to shoot his upcoming film.
As most of you must be aware about Karan Johar’s next film, a remake of Hollywood’s Stepmom, the crew of the film was in the city for its shooting. Starring Kareena Kapoor, Arjun Rampal and Kajol, the crew along with the director Siddharth Malhotra visited Australia during early summer. Based on Hollywood flick ‘Stepmom’, this film will be ready to release next year.
Arjun, who plays a father, has got a completely fresh and new look for this film. He likes to do any type of role, be it comedy, serious or of a family person. Elaborating it he says, “I am open to play all the roles provided that the role is well-written and clearly defined. I enjoyed playing politician in Rajniti, I absolutely enjoyed playing my role in Om Shanti Om and I took pleasure in putting my feet in Joe’s shoes while doing Rock On” When asked, ‘Has Rock On changed his on screen image?’ he promptly replied, “When the film is well made, the actors and the direction is good, script is well written, then I believe people enjoy it. I wouldn’t say it changed my image, but yes people liked me in that movie.” Talking about films and the roles that he has played so far Arjun humbly mentions that he watches his films only once.
Doing a remake on Chris Columbus’s Stepmom, we ask Arjun about his favorite Hollywood director, with whom he would like to work, given a chance. And he says, “There are many good Hollywood directors who make my favorite list. Martin Scorsese and Brian De Palma are just a few to name.
Arjun is busy shooting back to back for his films due to release next year. His fans can see him in different colors in Rajneeti, Housefull and Karan Johar’s remake of Stepmom. The actor has been busy travelling and shooting in UK, Australia and India says, “Though the schedules are hectic and I am out of town most of the time, that’s the way I like it.
He has been to Australia a couple of times before and he absolutely likes this country. “I like the way this country is and the people here. The people here are very good, friendly and helpful. It’s not hard to gel with anyone here,” he says. He also expressed his concerns about the student issue that has been disturbing the relationship between India and Australia. He said that they were concerned about this and the producers even thought of going to New York instead of Australia. “Australians are very friendly; it’s only a handful of people who are involved in such activities. All I would say is that we should not be scared of them and ignore it. I appreciate the actions that government has taken against it and I hope it all gets back to normal,” he signs off.
