Akshay Kumar, Ileana D'Cruz and Esha Gupta's tell-all interview

Rustom releases next week. SpotboyE.com caught up with the film’s cast. See the interview (video) and read all the details to know how it all panned out:

Akshay, you’re having the best time of your life in 2016, which in fact began somewhere around end 2015. Agree?
Every year of my life has been going great. I won’t say that only this year has been the best for me. First of all, who wouldn’t want to be in my shoes to be in this industry? When I came into the industry, I thought ki shaayad maine bahut achche karm kiy honge jo mujhe industry mein jagah mili. You have to be a star kid to make your entry into Bollywood. Otherwise, very few outsiders can make their presence felt here.



But we’re seeing the reinvention of Akshay. It seems there is a clear purpose that is driving the choice of your films...
Yeah, you could say that. I keep on changing my image. Mujhe mazaa aata hai. Otherwise, it becomes a little boring to keep on doing the same thing. At one point, I used to do only action and comedy films. Toh ek boriyat si aa jaati thi. A point came when I was not enjoying it so much. I needed some change and I am enjoying every bit of it after I implemented it.

We go over to Rustom. Tell us about your special connection with Neeraj Pandey...
I have done three films (Special 26, Baby, Airlift) with Neeraj and we’re also planning some more together. We get along very well, we have a very strong bond. We are friends rather than just sharing a director-actor bond. Hum dost hai, hasee mazak kartein hai. That's my connection with Neeraj. I want to do the kind of films that he makes, which is another reason why we connect so well.

As for Rustom, it deals with certain things that happened between 1959 and 1961. Taking these incidents into account, we have made Rustom.
Ileana, what are your thoughts? You missed the bus when you said ‘No’ to working with Akshay  in Special 26 (Kajal Aggarwal eventually did that role)... Akshay: (Cuts in and looks at her): What! (surprised) You were offered Special 26? Ileana: Yeah. Akshay: (mockingly punches her) Ileana: I remember I met Neeraj for the first time when he came up with Special 26 and I loved the story. I thought it was an amazing film. And I told him, “I hate saying this to you. It’s such an amazing film and I would really love to be a part of this film, but I just want to do a little more in the film.” But I thought the film was outstanding anyway. I have met Neeraj a few times after that. With Rustom, I wasn’t sure what to expect because I was so disappointed about Special 26. It was an amazing film but I had to turn it down because I was selfish and I wanted a bigger part in it. Akshay (cheekily says): So, you could have done my role. Ileana (laughs): I know, I should have done your role. I should have told Neeraj that. Akshay: Yeah. Ileana: That was actually offered to me soon after Barfi!. So, I thought it was probably better for me to do a bigger, full-fledged role rather than just a small part. Akshay: It’s strange that I don't know about this (shrugs) Ileana: Coming back to Rustom, I think it’s an outstanding story. I am super excited. I was also very nervous about doing it since I wasn’t sure whether I will be able to carry off the role of Cynthia Pavri, the way the film’s director (Tinu Suresh Desai)  and Neeraj saw it. I hope I have done justice. The film is very close to my heart.

Tell me about your role. How important is it in the film?\
Ileana: I think she is the catalyst to all the events.
Akshay (cuts in with a deadpan look): She tried telling Neeraj to name the film Mrs. Rustom.
Ileana: (starts laughing) You’re so bad ya! (laughs again and then continues) She  is the reason why Rustom gets into this mess. There is so much negativity thrown towards her, and yet she has to deal with that and come out looking positive; so it was very tricky for me. It was an emotional struggle for me as well, because I really wanted to come across as this wife who is so messed up but genuinely wants to make amends with her husband. And then, I wanted to have an amazing chemistry with Akshay--- which I think we had.



Esha, you were clear that you did Chakravyuh because you wanted to work with Prakash Jha. You were clear what you were getting into, when you did Humshakals. What was the catch that made you take up Rustom?
Akshay: Esha, catch this (flings a rubber band in the air which lands straight between them).
Esha: Of course, the role here was much meatier. My role is glamorous--- but it has shades of grey. Actually, it doesn’t even have shades of grey – it IS grey. So I was not even sure if I was up for it. But Desai sir and even Akshay sir told me that if you play this role right, it will be one of those roles that you will always be remembered for. And I hope I have done justice to Priti’s character, because she is not wrong. She just has a strong personality and is intimidating, so she just comes across as wrong sometimes. But at the end of the day, she is fighting for her brother’s justice.

You guys have shot on warships. Tell us one incident that stayed with you...
Akshay: I don’t think they shot on warships.
Ileana: Esha and I shot next to it.
Akshay: We got the permission to shoot on a warship but only for 3-4 days. You have to walk in a warship in a crouched manner. We managed it in time, but it was a big learning experience which was different and certainly not easy.



What did Esha and Ileana learn from Akshay during the shoot of Rustom?
Esha: People might take me in the wrong way, but I think he is the only person in the industry who is on time. And I just love that. I love people who respect time, it is the most beautiful thing. We as celebrities are paid as per the number of hours we spend at events and functions, aren’t we? So, it is very important for us to respect time. Above all, Akshay doesn't make you feel that he is a star.
Ileana: I learn something new on every set I go on. Rustom is an intense film and I love how intense Akshay gets--- but he disconnects soon and gets so light-hearted. I learnt this from Akshay.
Akshay: Ileana loves to bake cakes, and makes lovely buns (and Ileana laughs)..

Your most difficult scene in Rustom?
Ileana: The jail scene with Akshay.
Akshay: The Court scene where allegations are levied against me and I have to handle my self without a lawyer.
Esha: The entire first day of the shoot. You see, I come across as a person who is very mean in the film. I know that I have a lot of money and I know I have a body which I can use to intimidate men. All that had to translate well on screen. But after Day 1, I got into the character rather seamlessly.

Which film should I see first- Rustom or Mohenjo Daro?
Esha (shouts): See both.
Akshay: Toss a coin na.

Akshay, are you worried about the clash?
Akshay: I know that both release on the same day (Aug 12), but I am not worried. Both are from different genres, so I guess there is no clash per se. Besides, it’s a long holiday weekend; so I don't think that either of the two teams have to worry. Above all, this is not the first time that two films are releasing on the same day.


Image Source: Manav Manglani & facebook/Rustommovie