Aparshakti Khurrana is an actor-cum-singer who is spending his lockdown time in brushing up his culinary expertise. With a song released and a film in the waiting, he talks to Guardian 20 about his life in self-quarantine, his personal and professional journey so far, and of course his love for football and chai.
Q. Your latest song ‘Teri Yaari’ has received good response from the audience. How does that make you feel?
A. ‘Teri Yaari’ has received a very good response and as an artist you always feel very happy, blessed and satisfied when your hard work pays off. Me, Milind and Qazi were always on the same page along with T-series. Right from the way we feature in the video to the way we have sung the song, it all looks like one happy family of friends. It’s incredible, especially when we were all are meeting for the first time. To achieve that level of chemistry without having met them was tough.
Q. How is life under lockdown for you?
A. Quarantined life is fine; I think it is more a state of mind and you need to condition yourself according to it. Working from home is the way of life right now and one should find ways to keep oneself occupied and sane, without letting the outside news affect us that much. But yes, keeping a check on the numbers and taking proper precaution to not go out, is the most important thing right now. Too much worrying about the outside happenings is going to give you depression. I am just trying to keep myself occupied and keep my energy at the positive end.
Q. So far, you have had a good run with movies, will we be seeing you on the silver screen soon?
A. God has been really kind to give me the right kind of films and most of them have worked really well. My work has been appreciated through my films and I feel very blessed about it. The audience is going to see me very soon on the silver screen, in a film called Helmet, it is a film on condoms. It is going to be my first solo and I am really looking forward to it. Let’s see how that shapes up. I have no idea how this film will be distributed, in cinemas or digitally, producers will be able to tell that to you.
Q. What is the one thing you are missing the most in the lockdown?
A. One thing I am missing the most in lockdown is football and cricket, because I play that twice a week. I miss the feeling of running in an open ground. I am also missing my niece and nephew so much. The first thing I will do is meet them after this lockdown is hopefully over.
Q. Any hobbies that you have picked up?
A. I have picked up cooking. I have always liked cooking and I find it quite liberating. It is very much an exercise on self-sufficiency and very similar to acting. Just as while acting you have to put in the right amount of emotions to match the pitch of the film and decide the “amount” of acting in each scene, in cooking the very same precision goes into measuring each ingredient and using it. Slight variation in amounts, and both the dish and the scene can get ruined. So far, I have cooked Kaale-chane, Dhokla, butter chicken and I am quite good at making ajwain wali chai.
Q. Are you ever worried about being typecast in the role of “the best friend” or a supporting character?
A. Not really, because I truly believe that there is no phenomenon of being typecast and that is not a part of my creative upbringing. I think it is just about doing good work and bad work. The day you start doing bad work and people stop connecting with your films that is the day people will say, “Okay, Apar has been typecast.” I hope such a day never comes.