You know him better as Bobby Jasoos’ boyfriend Tassavur.
Despite his initial reservations, Ali Fazal now has no qualms about playing second fiddle to the heroine. “Heroines have played second fiddle to the hero for decades. So it’s okay to have the hero play “second fiddle” as you call it. My next few films are all male-centric… but Bobby Jasoos has given me a new perspective,” he says, during a quick interview he’s doing to promote his new film Sonali Cable , where he’s standing by Rhea Chakraborty to fight an evil broadband corporation that’s threatening to shut down her cable internet business.
“I’m a sucker for romance and I signed this even before I did Bobby Jasoos . Sonali Cable is a story about underdogs taking on a powerful corporation. It was a tight schedule and we had workshops to prepare for the role,” says the natural actor who has never needed acting school or theatre experience.
“I did a few stage plays but not enough to call it serious experience. I was studying economics and playing basketball when I got a call to audition for Red Chillies. If somebody tells you that you are the lead in an SRK film, wouldn’t you do it? Always Kabhi Kabhi was a high school movie. It definitely made me mature as an actor. I learnt from the producers of Always Kabhi Kabhi and Fukrey … I used to pick their brains.”
But Ali says he saw himself grow as an actor only during Bobby Jasoos . “I saw it happening while we were shooting. Something changed then, I would like to think,” he explains.
So much for a role he almost turned down. “I had apprehensions but Dia (Mirza) called me back and showed me the songs. What really attracted me to the film was the romance. I thought I could make a difference. I didn’t come here to be a poster boy.”
Sonali Cable, which releases on October 17, is an entertainer but not a big film.
“It’s somewhere in the middle. We don’t like to call it commercial nor is it fully arthouse because Anupam Kher plays a dramatic villain and it has songs. It’s something I kept asking the director too: Where do we fit?”
Ali shot for it much before Bobby Jasoos . “But rawness works for this film. You will see me more chikna , a lot younger. I haven’t seen any of my films fully, so I don’t know if I have improved as an actor.”
What does he mean he’s never seen his own films? “I just can’t get myself to see the full film. Yes, I go to the premiere but I’ve never managed to sit from start to finish. But you get to know how you’ve done through the reviews. I read, listen and take whatever I can and use it in the next.”
Coming up next is a psychological romantic thriller called Khamoshiyaan for Mahesh Bhatt’s banner. “It’s the Bhatt genre. There’s a hint of the supernatural, but mostly it’s a boy’s journey from narcissism to selflessness. Mahesh Bhatt and Vikram Bhatt have become more of a family to me,” he says, adding he’s doing another film (still untitled) with them, to be directed by Pooja Bhatt.
