It’s been two years since Abhishek Bachchan’s last release, and in the midst of Manmarziyaan promotions at Eros International’s office in Andheri, he seems to be in a great mood. Between interviews he cheerfully banters with the journalists waiting outside, borrows a camera to snap pictures of co-star Taapsee Pannu, and spreads his arms like Shah Rukh Khan to welcome director Anurag Kashyap.
In Manmarziyaan’s love triangle, Taapsee Pannu’s Rumi must choose between her erstwhile lover Vicky (played by Vicky Kaushal) while Bachchan plays Robbie, a more mature and introverted character. “Robbie is quiet but very resolute. I enjoyed that understated strength about him. He’s not very expressive. So [that] silence was a lot more challenging for me [to portray],” says the actor, now an image of poise that’s quite dissimilar to the jester-like persona he had on a minute ago.
Cinematic bridges
While the film stands out from Kashyap’s oeuvre, characterised by tenebrous and twisted thrillers, the director’s pairing with Bachchan is an unlikely one. Bachchan and his director have an earlier link though, the film that gave the actor his first Filmfare award in 2004 ( Yuva ) was one that Kashyap had written dialogues for. At the time, the latter had been vocal about being unimpressed by Bachchan’s performance as Lallan Singh in the film. The actor claims that the incident did not prompt discomfort between them.
“In fact,” says Bachchan, “when I encountered him on set, I [thought] ‘This isn’t the Anurag we’ve heard of’. You’d think he’s this brooding, intense person sitting in a corner, but he’s not at all! He’s effervescent, jumping around, and dancing. It took me two days to accustom [myself]. I [thought] ‘Okay, this is Anurag? I was prepared for someone else!’”
Talking about his hiatus since Housefull 3 (2016), one of the numerous comedies Bachchan seemed to be migrating towards, the actor shares that it was a conscious decision to step away and reflect. “I felt I had become very complacent as an actor. Somewhere I wasn’t happy with how I was doing my work. It wasn’t about what work I was doing,” he stresses, “it was how I was doing it. I needed to pause, re-evaluate and reassess.” Bachchan adds that he chose to return with Manmarziyaan because of many firsts it offered him – working with producer Anand L. Rai, writer Kanika Dhillon and Kashyap.
Career challenges
While Bachchan has had hits like the action-thriller Dhoom franchise, the comedy Bunty Aur Babli (2005) and the drama Paa (2009), for the most part long-standing success has evaded his 18-year-old career. The failure of one film was especially painful for the actor — Mani Ratnam’s Raavan (2010). Starring alongside his wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan for the second time in a second Ratnam film after Guru (2007), the actor describes the film as “home turf”. Admitting that critics had their own issues with the film, Bachchan remembers being told by a viewer, “You are Abhishek and Aishwarya — this married couple. How are you two not together in the film?” With a shrug the actor adds, “I realised that our real life image had greatly influenced what was happening on screen. It’s an interesting learning. This is your audience and we are working for the audience.”
One wonders if this learning affects Bachchan’s presence on social media where his life can be clocked and mapped. “There is no dedicated plan, no team handling [social media] for me – it’s all me. You are on this platform to engage and interact, and I enjoy that.” Referring to the trolls he deals with online, he says, “If you have the liberty to be nasty or witty, I have the liberty to say it back to you. [But] it’s perfectly fine.” Right after Manmarziyaan’s release Bachchan will jump into his next — a project he is still tight-lipped about. And eight years after Raavan , he adds that he and Aishwarya will get back together on-screen for Gulab Jamun . “It’s a beautiful script,” is all he’ll say about it for now.
