Varun Dhawan: Don’t call me star, just Varun

In just four years of entering B’town as an actor, Varun Dhawan has become the heart-throb of film makers and fans alike. Starting off with a romantic drama Student of the Year, Varun was naturally expected to land in more romantic hero-type roles, but with Badlapur, he trashed all the notions and proved his mettle as an actor with substance, who could easily carry emotional and grey characters.

Varun opens up about his family, friends, relationships and his dream roles.

Speaking about his dad David Dhawan and brother Rohit —both of them acclaimed directors — he says, “Dad has made more than 40 films. Rohit, who studied abroad and donned the director’s hat, has a totally different approach; he goes with a systematic schedule. He starts with a bound script and is stricter than dad. If anyone else comes late on the sets, Rohit will take up another scene and the latecomer will have to wait for his scene till the end.”

Remembering their childhood, Varun adds, “As kids, he would go and tell our mother even little things — like I’m making phone calls to girls or I’m eating wrong things. But undeniably, Rohit always allowed me to do what I always wanted to do — acting. When I turned an assistant director for My Name is Khan, Rohit was the one who reminded me of my aim and asked me to showcase my talent to the directors. Thus came Student of the Year.”

All praises for his co-star John Abraham, Varun says, “John is a stud. He is a simpleton and is not filmy at all. He surfaces only when his films are nearing release. He wears chappals and moves around coolly. While shooting with him, I did not feel as though I am working with someone older than me. We have become great friends.”

John, incidentally, is Rohit’s best friend too. Rohit, being someone with the habit of going for 5-6 shots, John and Varun used to place bets on the number of takes during the Dishoom shoot. “I earned about Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000 and lost Rs 800,” shares Varun.

The meaning of stardom has changed over the years, he feels. “I do not want to unnecessarily be tagged as a star. I just like to do my work sincerely. Could anyone believe that Rajesh Khanna’s stardom would be replaced by Amitabh Bachchan’s I would like to be just Varun.”

The biopic trend is picking up and Varun shares his dream roles. “It will be really interesting if something from the pre-British political period is made. Something from sports would also be nice. I would also like to do sci-fi and action genres in the future. I feel whatever role I play is like a biopic for me,” he says.

He has high hopes for his upcoming movie Dishoom. “Rohit will excel with the movie and Akshay Khanna has performed brilliantly as the villain,” he adds.

Much focus has been on Varun’s personal life too. He has been caught by the shutterbugs with his childhood friend Natasha Dalal, but he refuses to talk about it. When coaxed, he said, with a laugh, “Write that he (Varun) was blushing.”