Every one wants to be in films

From being a cool musician to winning hearts in TV serials in Pakistan, Fawad Khan has crossed many borders leading up to the biggie — his Bollywood debut

September 18, 2014 08:00 pm | Updated 08:00 pm IST - Bangalore

EVERYTHING IS PERSONAL FOR HIM Music, faith… Photo: G.P. Sampath Kumar

EVERYTHING IS PERSONAL FOR HIM Music, faith… Photo: G.P. Sampath Kumar

Fawad Khan is the latest addition to the list of singer-actors from Pakistan who are making a space for themselves in Bollywood and the hearts of Indians. Debuting in Khoobsurat as an Indian prince who charms the shoes off a bumbling physiotherapist, played by Sonam Kapoor, this shy and suave actor thinks films are where everyone wants to be.

Fawad began as a lead singer of Pakistani rock band Entity Paradigm. But it was his stint on Pakistani television serials such as Humsafar and Zindagi Gulzar Hai between 2011 and 2013 that brought him close to his filmi dreams.

“TV was really more of a training ground,” says Fawad. “And I thought people were not watching it. But they were! But I didn’t want to do TV either. Films are where everyone wants to be,” declares the actor who was in Bangalore last week promoting Khoobsurat that releases today.

“I was initially jittery because of the new environment,” says Fawad about stepping into Bollywood. “But my experience has been amazing. Any artist looks for respect, courtesy and hospitality. The homely atmosphere created by the Kapoors is great.”

Pakistan has always had a love-hate relationship with Bollywood. What does he think?

“Everyone is entitled to their opinion. But I believe it’s always better to let in competition, to see if it is competition! Like there was this time when a lot of Turkish productions dubbed into Urdu released via YouTube channels were a great hit in Pakistan. A lot of people in the local fraternity felt we should stand up against that. But I feel that if work from outside is appreciated, we should up our game and improve. If you let people from other cultures come in, you will grow.”

His transition from music to TV and films has been quite a journey, though during his college days, music and TV almost ran in tandem.

“I had quit on the industry three times. I was disappointed. I was younger, passionate. It was becoming about how cool I am. That’s not what I am about, I felt. You feel an immense responsibility — performing and communicating is the fastest way of educating. It takes three days to read a book, but you can watch three seasons of a TV series in a day!”

Khan made his film debut in 2007 with the Pakistani film Khuda Ke Liye . The film told the story of a musician, who, influenced by extreme Islam gives up his music. As a musician himself, was that a role he easily identified with? “I feel I shared some moments in the life of that musician. The opposition from my home to my music was not on religious grounds, that’s the difference. My problem was that of generation gap and bridging that gap. I tried 30 odd jobs and didn’t get even one! But it was difficult to convince my father. My battles were personal; so was faith. I even put my audio cassettes away into a box at one point in time and said to myself ‘I won't listen to it.’ But I broke my promise to myself in a week,” he smiles. “Music is a personal thing. I have a big corner in my heart for that. Now acting takes up all my time.” Transitions in a person don’t happen suddenly, he explains.

Continuing in the self searching mode, Khan says: “Fundamentalism and extremism is there in every faith. I’m the least opinionated and judgemental. It is your right to express yourself as far as you don’t violate someone.”

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