Ayushmann Khurrana: When I got married to Tahira, I had no money

Ayushmann KhurranaThough his last release Akshay Roys Meri Pyaari Bindu failed to stir the boxoffice Ayushmann Khurrana walked away with everyones hearts As the unrequited lover of Bindu Parineeti Chopra he brought to life a character who was not the quintessential Indian male With two films lined up for release Ashwiny Iyer Tiwaris Bareilly Ki Barfi and RS Prasannas Shubh Mangal Savdhan in the coming months the actorsinger talks of creating a niche for himself in the industry being the Amol Palekar and Farooque Shaikh of this generation and his wife writer Tahira Kashyap We caught up with Ayushmann at Yash Raj Studios Andheri Excerpts from an interviewAyushmann Khurrana With his wife Tahira ShahFive years into the industry have you finally found your spacePeople expect novel stuff from me which is great Dum Laga Ke Haisha 2015 was a defining film for me I practically sleepwalked through Vicky Donor 2012 Playing a quirky Punjabi guy was just playing myself In Dum Laga Ke Haisha I became a different person adapting to different languages and physicalitiesWhy did you choose Meri Pyaari Bindu It started with Balkis Ki amp Ka 2016 and in Meri Pyaari Bindu it is the potent subtext where the man is a giver and a pleaser I knew it was an unrequited love story which might not work but it was a risk Mainstream movies are depicting whats changing in reality at least in urban India By Indian standards the nation by and large is attempting to think more progressively Happy endings arent the focus Moreover Kolkata where a major chunk of Meri Pyari Bindu was shot lured me I always thought I am a Bengali trapped in a Punjabi body When I went to Kolkata I was blown away I can spend hours strolling down Park Street and live there forever I have spent months there and I am in love with the city The first time however when I was part of the reality show Roadies in 2004 When we flagged off from Shantiniketan everyone around was focussing on the bikes and the races but I sat under Tagores favourite tree soaking in the momentHow is it that a progressive thinker like you made your wife Tahira shift baseWhen I got married I had no money Tahira has been doing better than me professionally for the longest time She was gutsy enough to marry a man just for love and have faith in his talent She is a rockstar she was a professor had her own PR firm in Chandigarh She was also the programming head of a radio station in Punjab She supported me in every possible way I was a struggling actor which is often a gamble But there was never any ego between us When theres love theres no scope for ego Most men in India arent secure enough to be comfortable with such an arrangement It comes with the family It depends on how your father treats your mother But a man no matter where he comes from could always trigger a change If its a patriarchal family the dynamics are different In my case Tahira became the daughter in a household that had noneBhoomi Pednekar and Ayushmann Khurranastarrer Shubh Mangal Savdhan deals with erectile dysfunctionWith the lines blurring would you ever go back to television I was a VJ because I wanted to be an actor If I were a star kid I wouldnt need to do Roadies or be a radio presenter Now that I am here I would never want to go back Star kids get that guaranteed good launch by virtue of their lineage and network But I dont agree with people when they say theres nepotism We might not have had a direct entry into the industry but those who are good will stayHow do you take failureThe string of flops made me work harder It was a great learning experience I am a realist in life I do my work and get detached fairly easily Success is a lousy teacher Actors are myopic sometimes focusing on their lines their look and not caring much about the film When something flops you analyse things in totality Thats when Dum Laga Ke Haisha happened I was playing a despicable man but I was up for the challenge because I saw more than just what I am doing in itIs there a set goal in terms of what you aspire to be in the industry In five years I have given two films Vicky Donor and Dum Laga Ke Haisha which have won National Awards Everyone is gungho about being a superstar these days but who will become the Amol Palekar and Farooque Shaikh of this age I want to own that space I want to be the parallel superstar Everyone is a good actor these days There is no room for nonactors anymore At least in the space I am targetting the crowd is less Playing safe cannot work I have to do quirky stuff My next film RS Prasannas Shubh Mangal Savdhan is about a likeable guy who is suffering erectile dysfunction His girlfriend loves him despite that That love story is on a different spiritual level focussing on a problem that is as common as a headache Men dont talk about it because they feel being a man is about how well they are able to perform in bed As long as anything I do triggers a discussion I am happy