Who said you need to suffer labour pains to experience parental pride? An interaction with Student Of The Year (SOTY) gang and its director Karan Johar will teach you a thing or two about nurturing and protecting your brood.
Bollywood’s confirmed bachelor Johar, who is a master storyteller of glossy romances with beautiful people, starts off by declaring that he is unusually fretful about SOTY’s outcome.
The college romance introduces newbies Siddharth Malhotra (unrelated to designer Manish Malhotra), Varun Dhawan (son of director David Dhawan) and Alia Bhatt (daughter of director Mahesh Bhatt) in typical K-Jo style this Thursday. KJo’s (pronounced Kayjo) brand of cinema is a heady cocktail of glamorous people, beautiful locations, mesmerising songs and emotionally-charged moments.
“I feel like I am shouldering the responsibility of three careers. Now, I know what my parents felt when I made my directorial debut with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai in 1990,” said Johar. Like a mother hen clucking over her brood, he couldn’t help but speak highly of his discoveries. SOTY is set in a fictional elite college with kids who walk around in designer wear.
“Working with young actors makes you feel alive. Their enthusiasm is just contagious. There’s no fatigue or boredom there. With them around, I feel young,” said Johar. He may sound like a doting father on his child’s graduation, but don’t be fooled into thinking that he gave into all their whims.
The mastermind behind lavish romances such as Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai didn’t shy away from cracking the proverbial whip. Whipping them into shape (Bhatt lost a whopping 16-kilograms for her debut role) and polishing the rough edges by being an exacting boss was all in a day’s work for him.
“Aalia came to me 16 kilos heavier. She was what you call pizza-burger-milkshake phenomenon … but I made them hit the gym like never before. She now proudly gets into a sample size of all designer wear,” said Johar, puffed with pride. The boys came under his radar while they assisted him with direction of My Name Is Khan, while Bhatt was shortlisted by his casting director through auditions for this PYT-led film.
The admiration wasn’t one-sided. While the boys hail him as their mentor and idol, Bhatt said he was like a father and a teacher, all rolled into one.
“He has incredible faith in us and he treats us like equal. When it comes to humility and talent, we have learnt so much from him,” said Dhawan.
True to his word, our session with Johar and his young SOTY brigade during their recent trip to Dubai was like a crash course in how to navigate the fame and cinema circuit. We give you top tips gleaned from our interaction with Johar and his terrific-looking trio. In all fairness, Johar would give Dead Poet’s Society’s Robin Williams a run for his money — or even tempt you to rechristen his film Teacher Of The Year.
LESSON 1# If you are a director, it’s OK to be a vicarious gym trainer:
“I am no one to speak about fitness. But if you have the power to make others hit the treadmill, bring it on. It’s called vicarious gym training. Even after a hard day’s shoot, they hit the gym. Now, I can proudly say that they look so good in front of the camera. I am not a proponent of size zero, but I love the way Aalia and they boys have shaped up.”
LESSON 2# Remember you can only compete with your equal (the case study presented itself when he was asked if he ever faced any rivalry with his close friend Shah Rukh Khan):
“Don’t be delusional about a director’s power. An actor is in a different league. His brand power and superiority as a film individual is humongous. That is why we have struck a beautiful connection and bond. We always knew he was the bigger star and I was the smaller one. A director should never harbour any such illusions.”
LESSON 3# Acting is just like any other job — it just has good-looking people:
“Don’t let fame and the trappings of success mislead you. Remember you are here to act and that should be your focus. Don’t let the adulation sidetrack you from your goal.”
LESSON 4 # It’s good to take risks:
“In a star-ridden industry such as Bollywood, it’s always a risk to launch new faces. But remember, nothing ventured, nothing gained.”
LESSON 5# Treat newcomers with respect:
“I didn’t dumb down instructions just because they are new to this field. I don’t think any newcomer is perfect but they should never be made to feel uncomfortable. Also, the rough unpolished shots given by newcomers are sometimes more perfect than the rehearsed ones.”
LESSON 6# Keep your friends close even when you are at the top:
“Friendship is the only relationship that doesn’t come with bias or objectivity. Sometimes the bond between friends is more strong than a parental bond.”
LESSON 7# Student Of The Year is not Kuch Kuch Hota Hai ... or Mohabbatein (two Bollywood blockbuster student romances set in swanky colleges with rich brats, intimidating principals and sky-high steel gates).
“The only similarity is that it has a young, college atmosphere. Contrary to what the SOTY posters suggest, it is not a love story. It’s a film about friendship between Rohan [Varun Dhawan] and Abhimanyu [Siddharth Malhotra] and how rivalry changes their friendship dynamics.”
LESSON 8 # Who said you need to be logical and realistic in all your films?
“Whatever you don’t have in life, cinema gives you the opportunity to create it … I have seen critics review my films and ask where is the logic?. I haven’t become a filmmaker to be logical. I want my films to be magical. If you feel the magic without logic, then continue to make films that appeal to you.”
LESSON 9# Vanity is a precious commodity in Bollywood:
“Vanity has its own place in our industry. But it’s only when sanity becomes insanity you need to worry.”
LESSON 10# Don’t emulate the West, especially in animation.
“I have kept Kuch Kuch Hota Hai animation on hold. What I have found out is kids turn to Bollywood for masala films. But for animation, they turn to Ice Age. We are not yet equipped with tremendous animation endeavours. When in India do what the Indians love. Do not emulate the West because we will slapped in the face. They can never do what we do.”
