Anil Kapoor reveals his character in Dil Dhadakne Do and more.

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Dil Dhadakne Do is about a dysfunctional family and marriage. How dysfunctional is a real marriage?

I am the wrong person to answer this question. I am quite blessed that my friend became my girlfriend who later became my wife. We have been together for almost 42 years.  Anyway, for me marriage is about compromises. We all have our strengths and weaknesses. It’s all about how you adjust to each other, weigh the pluses and minuses and sometimes you have to overlook certain things. Also, sense of humour, being positive and being able to laugh at each other is very important for me.

In the film you play a father. How close is the reel character to the real persona?

Completely opposite, I am a very friendly person. The whole family is very democratic. Sunita (wife) keeps firing me all the time for constantly behaving like a friend to my children. She feels I should put my foot down sometimes. But then, I am what I am. In DDD, my character is very dominating, he is like a patriarch who believes it has to be his way or the highway. He is a control freak who feels he can get away with anything because he has the money. Power and money is very important to him. For me it’s completely different in real life. My children dominate me.

Who chose the salt and pepper look you carried in DDD?

I heard the script twice and both, Zoya and I, worked on references. Co-incidentally our references were almost the same. It has been a great creative collaboration. I have worked with so many people, I always keep myself very open, always trying to listen more than giving suggestions because I feel I will learn something when working with the youngsters. I love experimenting, reinventing and doing different things. I have taken too many risks, dangerous ones, in my career. Films are doing extremely well and people expected me to continue doing tapori roles, but I did an Eeshwar or Lamhe or Virasat or a small cameo in Slumdog… or Biwi No. 1 or Taal or No Entry or Welcome. I kept on doing things out of the box. I have been fortunate that these kinds of offers come to me since the time I started my career in 1979. I have been consistently challenged. I do get worried and am scared and wonder if I made the right decision. Thankfully, most of the times the risks have been worth it.

Zoya Akhtar is the youngest director you collaborated with, what was the experience working with a new-age filmmaker?

It is about how good you are at what you do and not age. There are a lot of young directors who don’t know anything. So it’s not about age. Currently the most critically acclaimed film, Mad Max Fury, is made by a 74-year-old man. The highest grossing and most successful war film was made by Clint Eastwood, who is 84-year-old. So it’s not about age. It’s about talent. Zoya is an extremely talented and a world-class director.

What has been the most challenging roles in your career of 38 years?

There are a lot of films that have been physically very challenging. For example, 24 was very challenging, Pukar and Nayak were physically challenging. A lot of people enjoy the physical preparation and a lot like the mental preparation for a role, which means they have to think a lot. I am a very physical person but sometimes it becomes a challenge. I feel I am an actor first and then a fighter and a dancer. But that’s part of my profession.

What has been the best and worst phases in your career?

There is no best or worst phase for me because I have always been about reinvention and experimentation. I have been consistent and never felt as if it was my worst phase. Genuinely, I must have felt low for a few hours. That’s why they call me positive. I have always been on a high, people may not think, but I would create something so I would constantly be energetic, positive and raring to go. There was a time I wanted to take a sabbatical. So, I spoke to Amitabhji to get his views. I don’t know if he remembers it but I do, I had asked him while shooting for Armaan.  He told me that the only mistake he made in his career was to take a break and not work for 4-5 years. So, I didn’t take one ever. I respect and look up to him. He is one of the greatest actors of India so I knew he talks sense.