To be known as one of Bollywood’s most popular child artistes can be a good thing, but for Kunal Khemu, it is a tag he is still trying to shrug off.
To be known as one of Bollywood’s most popular child artistes can be a good thing, but for Kunal Khemu, it is a tag he is still trying to shrug off. From talking about his 70- mm screen fascination as a kid to graduating to playing the hero, and tying the knot to Soha Ali Khan, the actor indulged in a freewheeling chat at our office on Tuesday.
The actor is currently promoting his upcoming film Bhaag Johnny — a project that is his first this year and only second after the successful run he had with Go Goa Gone. Why the long gap, we ask. “See, you have to be honest to the films that you do. I only do films that I find interesting and that I think I will have fun doing. Otherwise what is the point I’d love to do a film that comes with a guarantee of making 100 crores — I’d sign three of them back-to-back if I had the chance, but I don't because nobody knows what will work at the box office. So the only option is to do films that you believe in and I have done that so far.”
Early start When I was growing up, working in films was just a hobby because I really enjoyed going into the theatres and watching myself on the 70 mm screen. But when I did Zakhm, people actually took note of me as an actor and then I realised that I was going to miss this. When I gave my board exams, my parents were completely prepared for me to take up science — because that’s what Kashmiri Pandit kids do. They become doctors and engineers. I convinced my mom and dad that I’d like to pursue acting and luckily for me, Bhatt sir offered me Kalyug a few months after I finished college.
Working as a child actor was great, but it has its cons — for example, my name was spelt wrong. It was originally “Khemu” but nobody bothered to double check with me because, who cares about the kid, right (laughs) The spelling went on to become the one for all official purposes so much so that I changed my autograph to Kemmu.”
On the upside, I am really lucky for having worked with Ajay Devgn and Aamir Khan as a kid. Some say that I even have an Aamir Khan hangover because I have seen the man put so much passion into his work that it’s impossible to not be affected by it. I also consider myself privileged for having worked with Mahesh Bhatt saab. I can proudly say that his last film as a director was with me. Zakhm is responsible for me being an actor today.
Life after marriage It’s exactly the same. Marriage hasn’t changed anything. I think Soha and I kept postponing the wedding because we thought it’d change everything — something everybody around seems to think. But I have realised that it’s best not to take anybody else’s advice on these matters — go by your experience. Soha and I also lived-in together before we got married and we’ve been seeing each other for a long time. We are very comfortable in each other’s space. We sometimes actually forget that we’re husband and wife. When we look at our passes that say “Mr and Mrs”, we are like “Oh, we are married”. Our relationship didn’t start like a “relationship” to begin with. I never asked her out or anything. The wedding proposal is the only thing I properly planned.Speaking of planning, is starting a family “I am not answering that question. When you start seeing somebody, they ask you what is the next step After you are engaged, they ask you when are you getting married And when you get a baby, they ask you when are you getting divorced What is this (giggles). I am not in that space. In fact, when I got engaged, I thought I had two years to get married, but it all happened in six months. I just want to concentrate on work right now. It is a very important phase of my life.
On onscreen kissing clause (Saif and Kareena have a no-kissing clause in their contracts) Soha and I haven’t reached that point yet. It’s also because I shot Bhaag Johnny before our wedding. You know, it’s always a tricky place to be in and always a slightly awkward conversation to have, but a very important conversation to have. We may be husband and wife, but our relationship comes second in our life. Our profession is what was responsible for bringing us together in the first place. But yes, we both know that we will not do something that the other is uncomfortable with. When we reach the place where Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor are, in our lives, I think we can dictate terms and say, “oh, I’m not going to do it”.
Rapport with brother-in-law Saif Ali Khan It’s great. We do a lot of stuff together and never discuss films. We deal with enough films as part of our profession that we don’t want it to seep into our personal life. He is such a great guy. He’s got a great sense of humour and he is very well read, so he has so much more to talk about. Even if we do discuss films, we’ll discuss maybe the technique that was used in Hollywood films. Sometimes he loves talking about the Napoleon era and the wars, which I pretend to understand — much like he fakes interest when I speak of things that are closer to my heart than his (laughs). We like travelling and wild life. We recently went diving in Maldives.
What lies ahead... I really enjoy doing dark roles like the one in Bhaag Johnny, so I’d like to do more of those — not negative, but dark. Also a proper romcom. I’d love to work with Anurag Kashyap and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Anurag brings in a certain rawness that scripts need while Sanjayji is an artist more than a director, I feel. I would love to work with both of them.
