Aayush Sharma On The Box Office Pressures Of Working With Salman Khan | Antim: The Final Truth

4-5 months later, Salman bhai said you know I am going to play the cop. And I said but you

are playing a cop in Dabangg and Radhe, its going to be the third film that you will be

playing a cop. He was like no but I like the organic reality of this film. I think that this is

going to have a different view to it

All actors always want that phantom shot. Who doesn’t want the slow motion right?

Everybody wants to one day see themselves do that phantom shot

A big superstar should always try something new because they are always repeating

themselves but when they want to try something new then

there is also a box office pressure that binds them

But your last film didn’t make 100 crores so that means it wasn’t a hit. But actually, the thing

is the film is already made in a budget that it is also recovered its money so we are not risking anything

Hi guys this is Himesh and welcome to Pinkvilla. Today we have with us Aayush Sharma

who is all gearing up for Antim which is releasing on November 26.

Welcome to Pinkvilla Aayush, its lovely having you here.

Thank you so much brother. Its amazing to be with you and on Pinkvilla

Thank you

Aayush my first question to you is you have been involved in Antim right from the time, I

think it has been three years. Could you tell us about the journey?

I think in November we first time saw Mulshi Pattern and by December we had decided that

we are going to make this film. From January onwards I started training for it like you know.

At that point in time, I didn’t really know that Salman bhai is going to be a part of it. I just

knew that I am playing this character Rahulya and the rest of the casting is going to take time,

it’s going to happen soon. So, my first thing when I figured out that I am doing this character

was like I want to really present myself in a new light. I really want to go out there and

change the way my physical appearance is, through my voice, through my performance to

have that kind of a graph that this character demands. At that point in time, I remember I

thought this was going to be like 7-8 months and we will be able to do my transformation but

it was much difficult to actually put on that weight you know. It was like almost going in a 1

kilo per month. So, I think in March I got in touch with Tiger, Tiger Shroff I called him up

and I said, brother you know I really want to transform and do this film and this action film

and I think you can really guide me in how to go about it. So he told me that you know why

don’t you have my trainer? So, I go this trainer on board and the first thing that trainer told

me that is sir I don’t think I can do it in 3-4 months. I mean like no, but why can’t we do it in

3-4 months? I am not out of shape; I am much leaner. He said no, the kind of action you are

looking for, the kind of stuff you are looking for it will give us. It will take minimum one

year. It will be a gradual thing. You will need to first start training like an athlete. I want you

to be strong in real life to look strong on camera and so it will take time. You will have to lift,

eat and you will have to really, really dedicate your life into this to actually do that. So, first

thing I went and Salman bhai that its going to take some time, its not going to be as simple

and he said, don’t worry. Do it at your pace. Don’t do it in the pressure that you have to start

this film this year. We started that journey and then I think about 4-5 months later, Salman

bhai said you know I am going to play the cop. And I said but you are playing a cop in

Dabangg and Radhe, its going to be the third film that you will be playing a cop. He was like

no but I like the organic reality of this film. I think that this is going to have a different view

to it. Its not that typical cop who is going to be like you know completely out there. This film

has a little bit of darkness to it and I really want to be part of it. I genuinely believe that it’s

going to be good for you and I was very happy. Every actor it’s a dream to be on a poster

with him. I mean come on who doesn’t want to be on poster on with him? But obviously I

knew that it is, I am up for a huge task because to even be worth of being on a frame it is not

only a matter of physical transformation, it is not only a matter about trying to look, be or feel

muscular. It had to be completely distinct you know my character had to be a worthy

opponent to him so I think that took its own course. About a year and a half, we were just

training and just working on this character and finally I think when Mahesh sir officially

came on board and he started writing the film in the way that

he saw the film that really helped in shaping up what happened.

And you know the film was initially titled Guns of North and I believe you were planning to

set it up in the northern belt. How did that change happen

after and how did the Sikh cop came into picture?

So basically, when we were working for this film, you know we thought we can you know

the situation back drop of where that story starts from is actually, we can set up in north. At

the same situation, same things have happened there as well so we thought we might be able

to set up north but eventually when we started going through the multiple drafts that we were

writing we were not, I was not sure that we have the right approach to the film because it

almost felt like we are having a very top angle view to this problem.

We had a very top angle view of this gangster and this whole world and how you know

people come from this village and become gangsters in the city. I think I felt that it is very top

angle view so did Salman bhai. He also felt that you know just to scale up the film it might

actually lose the essence of what we really want to tell. A story we want to and then we

decided we really got Mahesh sir back and we said we really want it to be a rooted film. A

film that has real character, it should feel like a real film. We don’t need a glossy film on this.

This story doesn’t really have that kind of a backdrop that you can have choppers and this

luxurious cars and this and that. Like my character in the film, he is not, he is the gangster of

Pune. But he is not some lavish gangster sitting who has this massive houses and he has

Not as flamboyant as we have seen

Yeah, yeah. He is a very real space of a gangster so that’s why we moved the film back and

we said that lets go to Antim. Let’s make the film we intended to make not go towards

And you know you said that you know when the film was conceptualised you were not

aware, actually no one was aware that to who is going to play the cop. And for first 4-5

months when you were training what were the discussions like because you know in the

original film if we look at Mulshi Pattern it’s a very pivotal character but not as long in terms

of length. So, what were the discussion like and how did

that character evolved since you were involved in the journey right from the first day?

See, when we as you rightly said in the original film cops character was actually like 25-30

minutes of the film but there is a very, we felt that the climax when he says it was a very

important scene if you think about it. When he says, what village are you from? He says

Mulshi. That point we felt was a very, very strong point. We felt that is a very strong point

then you know otherwise you are thinking there is a cop who us just doing his job, trying to

go after a gangster. We felt that this is a very interesting thought to say that there are two

people who had the same back story, who actually know they both know each other’s back

story very well but on one side there is a cop who has been wronged but he chose to be a cop.

And there is one person who chose to be gangster so there’s a flip side to both the characters

and both of them had the choice so what Mahesh sir genuinely felt was the story also has the

option to give a message out to people that at any given point of time even though you are

wrong you still have an option of what path to choose and that’s something that we wanted to

project so that’s why we increased the role and we also felt that there has to be a certain

person who is the catalyst behind the journey. You know we need somebody who is making

sure this journey is manoeuvring the way you know the ups and the downs of the character

happen that’s what something we felt and that’s the reason why we increased the element.

We increased him very much pertaining to Hindi cinema, we involved him a little bit more,

we increased the run time, we gave him a little but of more cinematic treatment to obviously

cater to his fans and the film story and make sure that he is still not away from the film. You

know it should not be that he is a sperate entity of the film, he is very much also a character

in the film like we all are just characters you know that’s how everybody is intertwined with each other.

And Aayush you know like you said you transformed for this role. How easy or difficult was

that transformation journey like and also because you know

in between the pandemic struck us in which delayed the process?

Well I think the most difficult thing was the eating. I had to eat a lot. I had to constantly keep

feeding myself and that was the most irritating thing. I remember when I was going on a

vacation or something I had to go and choose hotels which had certain kind of a gym for me

to go to and you know meals booked in advance and eat that. So I think the most difficult part

about the transformation was more than anything was just eating, training everyday like there

were no of off days so it used to be training every day and then there used to be

physiotherapy in the night and there used to be ice bath in the night just to make sure we

don’t get injured, to make sure that, there used to be constant process. It was almost like how

athletes’ train. And then by the end of it got to me you know

And you know talking about the delay due to pandemic, did that ever bother you because you

even at the trailer launch Salman sir said that Aayush used to be, when will we start? And

you lost patience that one point of time

So its but natural because my first film came out in 2018 and I had decided to do this film in

beginning of 2019. Now you are like prepping for it, there’s been delays and I have to still

work on myself and there is certain amount of days so 2019 is gone in that and then there is

2020 that starts and you are okay now, we are three months away. Now we have like one year

okay so as an actor sometimes you feel like I debuted in 2018 now if I don’t have a release in

2019 then it looks like that there is nothing happening you know those thoughts come to your

head. You get like but I had taken up something as Antim which was quite bigger than what I

could chew and that needed that kind of effort and that patience to make sure that it happens

in the right way so finally when it was about to start in 2020 then the pandemic happened and

just you are like that’s work more towards, the three year period by the end of it just felt like I

hope by the time this film releases I hope I don’t have to come back and introduce myself to

people that you know that I had to, I hope the wait was worth it

you know that to wait for something like Antim was worth it

And you know talking about Loveyatri and the journey since then what made you decide to

you know step away from lighter space, the rom com space and you know switch to

something as intense as Antim? And what were the offers that

were coming your way in between that?

See my first reaction after the feedback I got to me after Loveyatri I always wanted to make

sure that I do something else in my next film. Obviously, some offers were coming again that

I was a boy next door, falling in love with a girl and the songs and the story and how all these

things go by but I genuinely didn’t feel convinced that I want to comeback, to another

romantic comedy you know I think that was the first film. I really wanted to shift gears in the

second film. I genuinely feel that you know right now its too early in my career to box myself

in one zone and say this is who I am and this is what I am going to always do. I believe there

is I have time, I have the energy, I am young to keep manoeuvring, keep changing myself to

do something else and you know if something excites you, why not? And action has always

been one of my favourite genres you know. Let’s be honest all actors always want that

phantom shot. Who doesn’t want the slow motion right? Everybody wants to one day see

themselves do that phantom shot and I still remember that when finally, the teaser, the first

look of Antim came out and I am running Salman bhai asked me what do you think of it?

You think it’s works? I said I don’t know I am just happy that it’s a phantom shot. I am just

happy that this whole action thing is coming out, I am just happy with that because that’s like

a dream come true for every actor to have a phantom shot so I just felt that if I really need to

make an impact, I need to throw myself at a different ship altogether you know. In my first

film I tried to be this romantic, sweet character and my second film because that’s what the

challenge was first thing that many people told me that you are too cute looking for being a

gangster. But I said that’s the challenge. This is something that we have here that you look

like this so you can’t do this but if you go to see films in Hollywood people, they change

according to films. It’s not about how you look. You change, you put on weight, you lose

weight. If Christian Bale can put on so much of muscles and then lose it so can I

And Aayush you know this is your second film so there might not be much of box office

pressure on you but you know with Salman Khan’s involvement there is a certain number

that everyone expects, what sort of discussions are there on that front between you and him

because you know whenever his films come its like 100 crores in three days and then what

next, we will see. So what are the discussions around that?

See I think when we started the idea of Antim was actually to attempt something different for

me and for him as well you know I think last couple of films that he has done it is the first

time that there is no female protagonist for him, there is no song where he is romancing

anybody or there is something like that. We are doing something different this time so we

were mentally prepared that we are actually signing up for something which is going to be

different either and this is a honest conversation. Either it is loved because it’s a dark film if

it’s not loved it might not get loved, its fine. But even he wanted to attempt it, even I wanted

to attempt it and I feel that at this point in time I genuinely don’t have as you rightly said I

don’t have the box office pressure but his name is expecting something. People are expecting

those things but I think it is all about experimenting. Sometimes I genuinely feel that we

always speaking on his behalf that a big superstar should always try something new because

they are always repeating themselves but when they want to try something new then there is

also a box office pressure that binds them

But your last film didn’t make 100 crores so that means it wasn’t a hit. But actually, the thing

is the film is already made in a budget that it is also recovered its money so we are not risking

anything out here but that image of 100 crore but that also boxes you into that small thing that

100 crores if you want to keep playing in that club you might have to repeat yourself all the time.

So there are no pressures in that front?

No, I think we are very content with the fact that we are trying to tell something. This is a

different film for both of us that’s why you know we feel that I just feel that this film has, this

film will see its own destiny and I think there will be people when we went into the whole

sequences there were times when we would say that you know Salman bhai’s film audiences

are more family audiences, is it okay to have this in the film? Are we okay to be so brutal in

the film and the idea was that I think its high time we need to, we can't always be catering to

same cinema. He is always been a huge superstar and he just told me I have time between

before Tiger starts and I genuinely want to do this film

as an experiment for myself as well so I think that’s exciting.

And Aayush what next for you after Antim?

Well there are you know I genuinely feel that I really don’t want to rush into anything you

know I just feel that you know everything depends mainly for Antim because this is a big

film for people to actually gauge what I am capable of. So I would not say that there is

multiple offer that I am getting or I am this film and that film and I am sitting and work, this

is not that. I genuinely feel that there is going to be a, its going to be a career defining film for

me. It’s a very important film for me if it does connect, if it does get the appreciation and the

love then it will be based on Antim. Right now, everybody will talk about movies but they

will not start the time Antim shows its merit at the box office. So I really don’t want to rush

into it you know based on anything, I just want to take my time. After my first film I took my

time to work on the things that I was told that this is the things that I ned to work on as an

actor. I worked on it and I came to Antim. So I am sure there will be some feedback that I

will get after Antim, I will work on that and then I will what I want to do next

But there are reports about you doing another film with Salman that’s Kabhi Eid Kabhi Diwali? Is there

any truth to that or there have been multiple reports for the last two years that’s why?

Well, you know this film is definitely on floors, its called Bhaijaan and I think they are

already Sajid bhai and Salman Bhai discussing for it. I think it all depends if you know Sajid

bhai and Salman bhai want me in the film and if they offer me and tell me to do the film I

will definitely be a part of it and why not? It is Farhad sir is

directing it, Sajid bhai is there, Salman bhai is there, I think it’s kickass

Perfect. Thank you so much Aayush. Lovely talking to you and wish you all the best for Antim

Thank you, thank you.