Kiara Advani on Jug Jugg Jeeyo: ‘I had to be reminded to bring a certain maturity every time I went into a goofy zone’

Kiara Advani is on a roll with no break. Making her mark with a streak of successful films from Kabir Singh to  Good Newzz  to  Shershaah  to the most recently released film  Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2  that ended the dry spell of Hindi film industry at the box office, Advani’s now gearing up for the release of  Jug Jugg Jeeyo (releasing on 24 June), co-starring Varun Dhawan, Anil Kapoor and Neetu Kapoor. Considered to be the industry’s lucky mascot and one of the most bankable stars, Advani is hoping to strike gold at the box office once again with the family comedy billed as a big screen entertainer. Next, she will be seen in Govinda Naam Mera alongside Vicky Kaushal and Bhumi Pednekar followed by a string of projects, including RC15 an upcoming Indian Telugu-language political drama directed by S. Shankar and co-starring RRR star Ram Charan. Advani made her debut in 2014 with Fugly and featured in films like MS Dhoni: The Untold Story (2016) and Abbas-Mustan’s 2017 thriller Machine, but it was the 2018 Netflix anthology Lust Stories that proved to be a career turnaround for her.

Excerpts from a chat with the actress Kiara Advani who says that her early rejections and recent successes — Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 and Shershaah — have given her a sense of clarity about the kind of films she wants to be a part of.

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 is inching towards the 200-crore club, does that make you feel more confident as an actor?

Yes, I am more confident now but I hope that Jug Jugg Jeeyo works and that will bring in more consistency at the box office after the success of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. I have a lot of faith in Jug Jugg Jeeyo since the time it was offered to me. It is the most relatable script that I have ever read. And I love family dramas, it is right up my alley, I have also grown up watching a lot of these kinds of films. I also feel the mood right now, people want a positive sunshine happy film which will also give you a different perspective, which will enlighten you. Of course, right now you have seen just two per cent of the film which is in the trailer but there is a lot of depth in the film.

You have completed eight years in the industry, what does it take to sustain in Bollywood?

I debuted with a film that didn’t do commercially very well, but what everybody told me at that time was that if you are a good actor you will sustain. You will stand the test of time. Your commercial success will not change your journey, your success will not be based on blockbusters and big hits but if you are a good actor you will survive. Today when I look back in retrospect I have been appreciated for my performances and my roles. I am blessed that I have organically gotten characters that have been versatile. Different characters just came to me, I didn’t have to consciously look for it. Now I am probably more driven. Kabir Singh released and the same year I had Good Newwz and three months later I had Guilty. I got that opportunity to show my versatility organically and now I am specifically looking at what I can do something that is different. I want to change things going forward.

What is your mantra to keep yourself going considering you have been giving back-to-back hits?

I don’t have a choice (laughs). Actually I get the energy from people I meet, it charges me up. I really believe in good energy. But I am really grateful and happy that both the films (Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 and Jugjugg Jeeyo) have come back to back with a decent one month gap between them. Both are of different genres and clean family entertainers. We are confident about this film also, we have faith because we have watched the film and we are getting a good feeling. I truly believe that this film will touch a lot of lives and a lot of heart.

Are you confident of scoring a hat trick after Shershaah and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2?

I think it should work and if it doesn’t I will feel very sad.

How is it working with two driven people Anil Kapoor and Varun Dhawan like the director (Raj Mehta) said that Anil is the younger version of Varun and vice versa? 

It is amazing that after so many years and after doing such iconic roles, films, Anil Sir still wants to be the best in his career. He wants to be best at what he does, he wants to be the best in all the scenes and he makes sure that everybody on set is giving their best. He wants to rehearse, he wants to prep, he wants to give more takes, he wants to try scenes differently. He is not slacked off, that theek hai itne saal ho gaye… there is always that first film feeling for him. God willing, if I get that kind of longevity in my career, I am inspired to have the same kind of energy that he has every time I do a film.

Varun and I have that Tom and Jerry kind of goofy equation. Raj would constantly tell us that you guys are a mature couple, you are heading for a divorce, stop laughing on sets… The relationship that our characters share is very complex because relationships in general are complicated and to show such complex emotions in a movie was quite a challenge. The film is a family entertainer, it has a lot of comedy but there is also a lot of depth. The characters that Varun and I play in this film come with that depth as a couple, what we have been through, so much they are carrying but they haven’t told each other. There is a big showdown scene with Varun and I feel that we have all been there and gone through this moment.

Tell us about your experience on working with Neetu Kapoor?

Neetu Kapoor has done plenty of movies because she has been working since she was a young child and the beauty about her is that she is so warm on set. She is grounded and down-to-earth and she also has this maternal instinct which makes it very comfortable for you as an actor when you are doing certain intense scenes, it comes out so naturally. There is a mother-in-law, daughter-in-law scene with her and it is a very woman to woman conversation. It is one of my favourite moments in the film and when we shot the scene both of us had tears in our eyes. It is the most organic and natural scene we shot. She had a long monologue and she did it so beautifully. All the men you have watched it were choked, so women naturally will feel it. But men I think will be most moved by this scene.

Raj Mehta was your director on Good Newwz, how was it working with him again?

Raj is amazing at seamlessly going from comedy, to drama, to emotion… You have seen that in Good Newwz and hope the same is seen in this film. He can bring both sensitivity and entertainment quotient at the same time. He has put this relationship drama together sensitively and in an entertaining manner.

How is it when you shoot intense scenes …do you carry work home?

When you do those scenes well then you go home feeling very satisfied but when you are in that zone, in that character especially when it goes on to such a high pitch and note and feeling emotionally, it takes a little bit of time to get back to normal. But on this set the environment was so fun …if there was an emotional scene, after the cut someone would crack a joke and we would end up laughing. Energy was always high. The interesting thing is all four of us have this quality to laugh at ourselves. While making this film we have taken a lot of inspiration from parents, from married couples …we would talk a lot to people and try to bring in those relatable moments. We realised that the turmoil in relationships happen because of unfinished fights, or lack of communication, or egos and later when you look back you wonder why we wasted time on this petty thing.

What is it that you take back from the film?

There is a lot that I have taken back from this film. Every relationship has to be nurtured, it is not always sunny, there will be storms as well but I don’t feel that one should ever give up, you must definitely put your all to make it work. Be it your partner, your family, your parents, mother-in-law, daughter in law…every relationship has to be nurtured. The film also gives a different perspective on how children see their parents’ relationship. You always expect that your parents’ relationship is perfect but it is important to understand if they are really happy, is everything going okay, we usually don’t sit down and have that conversation with our parents. We just assume that theirs is a happy marriage. The film gives a lot of insights on life, on marriage, on relationships.

As compared to the intense film Kabir Singh and your previous release Bhool Bhulaiyya 2, a horror comedy, did you find Jug Jugg Jeeyo easy-breezy ?

Every role and character you play has its own challenges. Although this one is closest to my mindset, this is exactly how I think but there were a lot of challenges to put together this character because it is a very layered character in terms of relationship specifically. I had to bring a certain maturity which Raj would keep reminding me every time I would go into a goofy zone. He would say ‘mature, mature, I want her to sound mature, I want her to be very assured in what she is saying’ and that had to come in a very small nuanced way whether it was just like speaking in a certain way and her stance in general. I feel people who have observed my work closely will be very proud that I took up a role like this. This is truly a character I resonate with the most because her belief is to balance her family and her career and that is what today’s young woman strives to do. Today women are equally capable and when nobody questions a man nobody has the right to question a woman and that is a very important thing that comes through in the film and I am happy that we are saying it so effortlessly and yet making that strong statement in the film.