When she first came across the script for Baar Baar Dekho , Katrina Kaif, by her own admission, cried. At that time, her future co-star, Sidharth Malhotra, was happily munching away. But that’s not to say he wasn’t paying attention. The Delhi-born actor instantly agreed to come on board once he read the script.
“It’s a very new concept that gives a message to the people,” Malhotra says. “We’re all obsessed with materialistic things and our careers and nobody really has personal goals like mera ghar aur bacche hona chahiye [I need to own a house and raise children].”
Malhotra says the film will tell the audience to look for the smaller things in life and that equilibrium is extremely important. He says, “You can’t be lopsided about things because overall happiness is dependent on balance. I could relate to that.”
Baar Baar Dekho , directed by Nitya Mehra, tells the love story of Jai and Diya, but there’s a catch: time travel is used to take us through different stages in their relationship. Kaif says, “It’s very true to what happens around us, in relationships, marriages, families. That was what I was interested in.”
Kaif plays Diya, a typical upper-middle class Delhi girl, who is free-spirited and isn’t afraid to speak her mind. Kaif says, “Women have a special knack of making their characters more relatable and Nitya [Mehra] made sure I understood who the person was.”
Malhotra says he also related to Jai, an ambitious and commitment-phobic man, from whose view the film is told. “When I came to Mumbai, I had a single-minded focus, which was required at that point to become an actor. But I neglected certain relationships,” he says. “But after this film, my approach has changed. I’m 31 today, and at this point I feel a little assured in my work and profession. Now I need to create that support system and base to enjoy it all.” After a brief chat, The Hindu decided to have a fun tête-à-tête about time travel with the two actors.
If you could time travel, would you want to change your past or see the future?
KK: I would never want to rectify past mistakes. Maybe what you do at a certain point takes you to a better place in your life. I can’t presume to know what would happen in life. But if I could time travel, I would use it to just have fun. I would try to be in every place I was happy or discover something new.
SM: If I had to, I would go back in time and change stuff. I flunked in Class IX. My mother was like, ‘Mere bete ka kuch nahi hoga. He’s got no career, no future. He’s bakwaas [hopeless].’ So I would go back and cheat in my exams, and score 90. I’d prove my mum wrong and make her happy.
One thing you would change in the world’s history?
KK: Hitler. But then again we’re presuming to know better than god. So maybe I’d just have a chat with him and set him right.
SM: I think I’d try to avoid the India-Pakistan separation. A lot of people got killed. My family, my ancestors came from Pakistan. I could see firsthand what they went through so I’d avoid that.
What would you like to know about the future?
KK: I’d like to see where we’re going with the digital age and smartphones. If this is the level of Internet consumption, social media and pictures, I would really like to know where we would go in 10 years.
SM: We just came back from the live Dream Team Tour and a majority of people [only had their] cellphones out. There’s an obsession with recording things for posterity and not knowing how to live in the moment. I’m a little old-fashioned, my first thought is not to record a moment, but to sit there and enjoy it. More than the political scenario, it will be interesting just to see what would be next. Do we have chips in our hands, give up technology and go back to the Stone Age? I hope there’s no nuclear war. So all these questions to see what would happen technology-wise.
Is there anyone you’d like to meet from the past?
KK: William Wallace [a Scottish knight and one of the main leaders during the Scottish war of Independence], because he’s pretty cool. I’d like to meet anyone who’s brave and has done extraordinary things.
SM: Michael Jackson. I’ve obviously heard his music, but about a decade ago in my teens. I saw his performances on my friend’s projector. I could feel the energy with just a small speaker and a screen. Today, I am a performer and I really appreciate all the energy he gave on stage. He would give his heart and soul and make people cry. I think he was extremely special and I would like to meet him.
Do you have any favourite book, TV show or film about time travel?
Both: The Back to the Future series with Michael J Fox.
