He is Vicky Kaushal’s brother to the whole world, but budding actor Sunny Kaushal hopes that tag will go away once people see his acting skills.
Sunny will be seen in the upcoming film ‘Bhangra Paa Le’ and the web series ‘The Forgotten Army: Azaadi Ke Liye’, both scheduled to release in January.
“That is my standard introduction, as they [media] say, ‘this is Sunny Kaushal, brother of Bollywood heart-throb Vicky Kaushal!’ What they say is factually correct but I am saying that with time the tag shall pass and I shall make my own space here. It is a little irritating when people repeatedly say so, but I understand where they are coming from. I keep getting asked if Vicky is giving me tips to choose the right scripts. The answer is ‘no’. We are brothers and we have so many other things to talk about, really,” Sunny said.
He added: “It is important to respect every actor’s journey instead of comparing them. That’s the reason why, when media asks me those questions, I wonder why. But I know the tag will go away when it has to.”
Starting his career with the infamous character Spandan Chukya in the web series ‘Official Chukyagiri’ followed by a role in the Bollywood film ‘Gold’, the actor is gearing up for his first starring role in a Hindi feature film, ‘Bhangra Paa Lee’. He is also shooting for two other films, ‘Hurdang’ and ‘Shiddat’.
Set in Punjab, ‘Bhangra Paa Lee’ revolves around a dance competition and also travels back to the 1940s. In this film, Sunny will play a double role for the first time.
Asked if it was easier for him to understand the emotions of the dance form bhangra as a Punjabi, he said: “I am a Punjabi and therefore there are certain nuances I can pick up really well — quite effortlessly, in fact. Having said that, I am doing a double role in a film where I am the protagonist, learning dance and carrying the film on my shoulder. It’s quite a task. I think I have earned it.”
The film also features Shriya Pilgaonkar and Rukshar Dhillon. The cast trained for four months before start of shooting.
“I learnt about the sub-genres of bhangra that earlier I had no idea of. For instance, ‘dhamal’ is the popular form of bhangra that we see, it is a celebratory form. There is another style called ‘jhumar’, where the beats are slower and the movements are poetic. We have used this form more, to narrate the love story between the two [protagonists],” Sunny replied.
Directed by Sneha Taurani, ‘Bhangra Paa Le’ is scheduled to release in India on January 3.
