When Imran Khan chatted with fans last week on Buzz 18, sadly there was a technical problem and many questions did not get through. However, Imran promised that since he had to go after staying 2.5 hours he would answer more of the questions through email to Buzz 18. He kept his promise and chose some lucky fans’ questions out of the hundreds that were sent during that exciting chat! As we promised here is a report on those questions and the fabulous answers.
Of course many questions were about his blockbuster debut film Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. Imran answered again that his favorite scene was the one where Aditi says she is going to New York but added in a cool new tidbit of information, he also revealed his favorite song and that he loves to sing: “My favourite scene in Jaane Tu was what we on set called ‘The Farewell Scene’. Jai and Aditi sitting by the waterfront, talking about her going to America, and Jai finally noticing the bruise on her face. I did that scene in my original audition for the film, and then again with several actresses who tested for the film, and I’ve loved it every time. My favourite song is ‘Kahin To…’ cheesy, I know, but I love it. Sue me. I love to sing, but I’m honestly not much of a singer… I don’t have the range in my voice. I do intend to develop it though, and maybe I’ll sing in the future.”
One fan brought up that he was really disappointed with IBN’s Masand giving Janne Tu only 2 stars and Imran said, “ I don’t know if you saw an interview I did with Rajeev Masand after the film’s release, I ragged him about giving the film only two stars. He was a little embarrassed, I think, but he took it in good spirit.”
Who would he have loved to debut with if he had a choice? “There are several actresses I would love to work with, but for this film, it could never have been anyone but Genelia. She was perfect for the role, and that’s the most important thing.”
One of the really interesting questions that was put to him was: “ I think the character Aditi also was exceptionally fine as this days we don’t find good actress in Bollywood who can really act. What’s your opinion on this?” He replied: “You’re right Aditi’s character was a particularly good one, and a terrific role for Genelia to play. I feel we’re at a point in Hindi films where women are not given a whole lot to do, besides cavorting in bikinis, and that makes it all the more exciting for an actress to have the chance to play a completely etched out, three-dimensional character. Hopefully other people will take note and start to create more challenging female characters in their scripts.”
His favorite actresses? “There’s lots… in no real order, I’d say Juhi Chawla, Madhuri Dixit, Konkona Sen and Kareena Kapoor are actresses I love to watch.”
Full of compliments for his performance in Jaane Tu and the fact that he is so “straight up” in interviews, another fan had several questions for the young actor including what does he want to achieve as an actor and who does he feel is his biggest competition. He answered both with a bonus saying, “Am always glad to interact with fans, it’s my second favourite thing to do (after the actual process of making films… sorry, that takes precedence). You’re the reason I’m in the movies, it’s all about entertaining people. As to being straight up, it’s really just the easiest thing for me. Lying’s complicated, and I’m not very good at it, so I stick to what I know. People who don’t appreciate honesty are people who you don’t want to be associated with anyway. Lots of questions from you, I see…1. No idea… all I’ve ever wanted is to do the best I can, and hopefully have a few people like my work along the way. 2. Nobody competes with anyone but themselves. There’s room for lots more actors, no need to be insecure. That said, I think Ranbir is one of the finest new actors on the horizon, certainly more trained and polished than me. I’m expecting great things from him.”
Continuing on that line of question another fan, saying that the media likes to compare him with Ranbir, asked how does that feel and is it possible we will see the two in a film together? “Ranbir is a fine actor, and I’m glad that people consider me to be in the same league as him. Upcoming movies are Kidnap (Oct 2nd) directed by Sanjay Gadhvi, and Luck (undecided) directed by Soham Shah. Nobody’s offered me a movie with Ranbir yet, but I’d be happy to work with him if it’s something we both like.”
He was asked if like Aamir he planned to concentrate on only one movie at a time and he answered yes, saying, “I’m not setting any kind of a timetable for my work, but I do know that I can’t work on more than one film at a time. It doesn’t allow me the kind of time and effort I like to put into creating a character. It also limits your looks. Suppose I feel a certain character should have long hair, and another one should have short hair? Or perhaps I need to bulk up for one film, but lose a lot of weight for another? You need to be able to give every film your full attention.”
One fan asked what everyone is dying to know: if we will see Imran and Aamir together in a film and his exciting and funny answer was: “ Yes, we would certainly like to do a film together. Nothing’s come up yet, but as soon as we find something we both like, you can bet we’ll be fighting over who plays which role in the film!”
So what did he do before Jaane Tu? “I went to film school in Los Angeles, where I trained as a writer and director. After graduating, I worked as a camera operator for a reality show (which never got picked up by any channel) for a few months. Then in 2005 I decided to move back to Bombay and try and make a career here. And the rest, as they say, is history.”
Similarly he was asked if he were not an actor what would he do? “Whatever I chose in life would have to have been connected to films. I love every single aspect of movies, so as long as I get the chance to be a part of making a film, I’m happy.”
Revealing a bit about himself and what he does when he is not acting he wrote, “My friends call me the most boring person on Earth. I hate parties, hate clubs, and am not really fond of going places so I tend to drag them all over to my house.”
He also revealed how he and his girlfriend Avantika met, “We met at a friend’s place. He had invited a bunch of people over for dinner, and there we all were. I’d never seen her before, she’d never seen me. We just ended up chatting with one another, and kind of kept on chatting. One thing led to another, next thing I knew it was six years later and journalists are asking me how we met… strange.”
Favorite music? “ Mostly rock… I like a lot of classic rock, Beatles, Hendrix, Led Zep, Springsteen… that kind of thing.”
At the chat one fan asked him to describe himself and he answered that he needed 15 pages, well she said “c’mon 10 adjectives” and so he answered, “ Ten adjectives to describe me… Quiet, stubborn, loyal, introspective, cheesy, calm, amiable, polite, frank, simple. As you learn more about me (through various means) you’ll understand why.”
There were several questions about his upcoming projects including: “Out of the three films you have worked on or are working on currently, JTYJN, Kidnap, and Luck, which character was the most challenging to enact?” He answered: “ I found my character in Kidnap the hardest, simply because I couldn’t find any common ground with him. Jai was easy for me to relate to, and my character in Luck is also easier for me to understand. Kidnap, though… I loved the script, loved the character, but man, was I in over my head. Major credit to Sanjay Gadhvi, the director, for having more faith in me than I did, and helping me through the film. Ultimately though, I’m mostly happy with the work I’ve done, and I’ve got a good feeling about it. Hopefully you guys will feel the same once you see the movie.”
He was also asked how different his role in Kidnap is from Jay in Jaane Tu and how much he had to prepare for his character. “My role in Kidnap is as different as it is possible to get from Jaane Tu. It didn’t just come to me, nor did it come easy. I put a lot into preparing for that movie, and once the promotions and interviews start, I’ll go into further details about the character.”
He did reveal that he is not part of Karan Johar’s My Name is Khan but did say that Karan sent him a message after Jaane Tu saying, “He enjoyed the film and liked my work, but he has not offered me any film.”
Excitingly Imran answered this reporter’s question: “What is the hardest thing about acting?” His wonderful reply was: “For me, the two hardest things about acting (in no particular order) are: 1. Light, charming, flamboyant scenes. I’m such a somber person; the darkness comes easily to me, but not the other stuff. I have to work hard at that. And 2. Makeup. I hate it. More than anything. It’s sticky, it rubs off on your clothes, on your hands if you happen to touch your face during a scene, on the walls if… you happen to rub your face on a wall. For whatever reason. Luckily I didn’t really use any in Jaane Tu, but I’ve had to use it for Kidnap. You’ll see why when the campaign breaks.”
We here at Bollyspice wish Imran the best of luck and look forward to his performances in Kidnap, Luck and all his performances still to come! We will keep you updated on all the Imran news so watch this space for more!
