Taking a chance

Actor Shahid Kapoor. Photo: Bhagya Prakash K

He charms you with his warm, genuine smile. He takes initiative to answer questions and shows his willingness to strike a chord with the interviewer, even when goaded to talk on unsavoury topics. Meet Shahid Kapoor, affable guy with a dash of humour.

Shahid was in New Delhi to promote Chance Pe Dance , released this Friday. The film is directed by Ken Ghosh who gave him his first full length role in Ishq Vishq in 2003 which gave him the Filmfare Best Male Debut Award too.

In

Ishq Vishq “a Rs.2 crore film” as Ken puts it, Shahid barely did a jig but in

Chance Pe Dance “a 20-crore” UTV produced film, Shahid's dancing skill is the USP. Says the actor, “Of late, I have not been taking any film where dance is an added burden. This film is about a talented but struggling dancer who dreams of hitting the zenith in the world of dance. So dance comes as part of the story and not to ‘complete' a package.”

But in most of the dance films and even in reality shows, the audiences end up watching similar steps. “And it still works,” interrupts the actor, adding in haste, “This time around the audiences would get an absolutely different feel.”

He owes this “feel” to American choreographer Marty Kudelka, who taught him new steps. “For instance, we took certain compositions and did it our Indian way. But when we saw him, he did just the reverse.

He pumped it up with an unmatched energy and made it hip-hop. And it is the ‘attitude' in those dances that matters. He also added an extraordinary synchronisation of face, steps and costume. For instance if you see Mithun Chakraborty or Sridevi dance in their old films, their faces and steps used to show two different ‘attitudes', Kudelka has welded them together. He also taught me American street dance krumping. It was a little tough.”

After the success of Jab We Met and Kaminey, the young audiences have labelled him the next Shah Rukh Khan — a hero who can draw audiences to the cinema hall. Shahid takes it as a compliment.

He chuckles, “With the success of Kaminey my safety net has widened. Now I can take the ‘risk' of doing diametrically opposite roles and still be accepted. If the audiences think I am the next SRK, I am more than ready to lap up the mantle. I have been waiting for long.”

So, what's next? “An actor should be like a supermarket. He should know what to provide to the consumer, when and how. I am also trying to take on roles according to the people's varied taste. I hope my next film Milenge Milenge and Pathshala would again make the audiences see my range,” he concludes.