No director saw me as the star of a larger-than-life film: Ranbir Kapoor

Ranbir Kapoor will be back on-screen after a gap of four years in an all-new avatar in Shamshera. At the film’s trailer launch event, Kapoor said that he had never played such a character before.

“Honestly, no director saw me in films like these. I’m grateful Karan Malhotra could see me in a film like Shamshera because I wasn’t getting offers like these. They usually see me in coming-of-age cinema or as a romantic hero. So, I jumped on to this because I knew this film has the potential to speak to a larger audience and people who love going to the cinema. I got bored with my comfort zone. After 15 years in the industry as an actor, you have to challenge yourself.”

This film was indeed challenging for the Barfi! (2012) actor. “Karan is someone who really held me through it. The one thing I lack as an actor is angst. I’m not an angry person. I’m a very fun-loving, detached guy. We sat together a lot because he was like, 'How do I get that anger from you?' He tried to get into incidents of my past because he really wanted to tap into that side of me. But it’s all on paper; when you start interacting with the director, you get the feel of the character,” he added.

“It was a very hard role because, trust me, there were days when I was like, 'I can’t do this'. Apart from the physical challenge, I had this mental stress of how do I pull off such a role high on emotions because it’s not relatable. It was out there. There were days when I used to tell God, 'Please look at me and help me get through this', but I’m glad I had days like these because there’s no fun without risks,” said the actor.

Kapoor believes that such films are difficult for performers. “Being a part of a well-made film is way easier than being a part of a full-fledged masala film because it combines multiple genres. There’s action, comedy, romance and family emotions. So, it’s quite challenging.”

The film sees Sanjay Dutt play the antagonist and Kapoor, who has also essayed the veteran actor in his 2018 biopic, is in awe of his co-star.

“I had a poster of him in my cupboard. Sanjay Dutt was my first hero and idol. Then I got to know him, I got to act as him, I got to portray his life and now I get to fight with him. So, this journey has been amazing. He treats me like a son, friend and brother,” shared Kapoor.

He added, “He shouts at me when he feels I’m not doing something right. He used to make fun of me when I was doing Barfi! We used to work out in the same gym and he’d be like, ‘Tu barfi kar raha hai, next film kya hai? Peda?’ So, he used to tell me that I should do larger-than-life films and I hope Shamshera is a positive step in that direction.”