Exclusive: Harshvardhan Rane talks about films, heartbreak and life

A film old in Bollywood and with a few films to his credit in the Telugu film industry actor Harshvardhan Rane has created a humungous fan base for himself After Sanam Teri Kasam the actor has geared up for his second outing in Bollywood with scion JP Duttas war film Paltan which is based on the 1967 IndoChina war In an exclusive interaction with midday online Harshvardhan Rane unleashed himself his emotions and made us meet the real person within him who has been his backbone throughoutFrom being ridiculed for wearing Rs 500 shoes and walking at an event in casuals to disclosing about his livein relationships the 34year old takes all this in his stride and returns to his comfort zone ndash his jeep bike and freedomYour first film Sanam Teri Kasam was a romantic one You earned massive female fanfollowing Your second outing is drastically different How did your fans and near and dear ones react to this decision of transforming from a chocolate boy to the rugged man in PaltanI dont have a lot of near and dear ones because I ran away from my house when I was 16 2001 I work for myself and do things that I as an audience would go and watch That is my benchmark I always got inspired by cinema the dialogues they mouthed especially Amitabh Bachchan sirs dialogue Main aaj bhi phenke hue paise nahin uthata and then I said to myself If he doesnt pick up money then why should I For me money was symbolic of an advice So I never took any advice that was thrown towards me and hasnt heard from anyone in my life Many people have many opinions If you start doing something new theyll people say You are doing the wrong thing Therefore one should live life according to its own terms For Sanam Teri Kasam I asked myself Do I connect with the film I loved the script when I read it I saw my father his youth and my own emotions in it Even this films casting was already done they had locked on a Kashmiri boy I reached on the sets of the film just two days prior to its poster shoot I was however adamant that the director sees my work at least once and I was obliged After a half hour they came out and said We want you now So thats how this film Paltan also happened I was the last one to be cast in the film There was someone else Abhishek Bachchan before me I do not go by the societal norms I just believe in what my gut feeling says I heard 156 scripts after Sanamhellip Whatever you do in life there will always be a flipside story I listen to my own heart theres a voice inside all of us I have left that voice in me and I let it speak There are many who say that it took two years for him to sign his second film I say I took 15 years to reach here so these two years are nothing in this comparison Im very happy with all the decisions that I have been able to makeYou mentioned that you eloped at the age of 16 from your house did you have anyone besides you to share your grief happiness I always believed in being your own hero and being your own Santa Claus You should be able to celebrate Christmas by yourself Its indeed true that you need someone to share your feelings with But what if you never get any shoulder So you look towards your feet which means you have to stand all by yourself More than shoulders your own legs will support you I have done a number of odd jobs ndash Ive worked in a PCO cyber cafeacute Ive been a delivery boy courier boy have served food to people in a small restaurant Ive been assistants to DJ players So I have done every kind of work on this planet But I always wanted to reach here Film industry I believe that to do something new you always have to do something difficult If I had followed my dads profession I wouldnt have gone through these hardships I have gone through every single detail of my life I did not know how to speak English When I was jobhunting I was thrown away saying You dont know English how will you work The entire process of learning was to reinvent and upgrade yourself with each passing day Today I also see my makeup artist upgrading himself with the industry standards And anyone who upgrades himself every day I respect them a lot Thats exactly what I have tried to do theres no end to the way I have groomed myself and its a neverending process Your hair skin teeth make your body follow a diet I never made many friends and did not fall in the party culture here What happened by doing this you ask I can still wear these 500 rupees shoes Points towards his feet Im not obliged to anyone Today also I drive the same jeep that I have always had I go to the biggest events in the same jeep This is what I have and there is no embarrassment in thatIs anyone from your family in touch with youNot really because my father and mother were separated when I was 10 years old At that time there were no mobile phones or social media So once a person leaves your house theres a disconnect and then I eloped My father passed away in 2009 and after that everything was left behind When I was leaving the house I just had 100 bucks that my dad gave He gave the money out of anger frustration or what was it I dont know He said Is se jo bana sakta hai apni life ka bana le Make whatever you want to of your life with this 100 rupee note My friend Tikkuu bhaiyaa also gave me 100 rupees I came to Delhi and thats how I started I am very close to my sister She and I can die for each other and without speaking too much we know thatHas she been with you during film promotionsNo I send her a lot of pictures I sent her a photo of mine with Arjun Rampal sir She sister gets very excited to see Arjun sir because she has a huge liking for him She feels very nice to see me hereTalking of promotions weve seen you staying with the localities cleaning cow dungs graze cattle and so onhellip How was your experience doing all thisAll this was with JP Dutta sirs guidance He always believes in spending time with the rural people and the real soldiers If you notice this film does not have any junior artistes Paltan has people in the army soldiers have played the real part So when I told Dutta sir that I want to spend time in the village he was more than happy When you go into the deeper crux of any strata or any setup you understand the things which nobody can teach you in an acting schoolView this post on InstagramArjun sir and his PALTAN examining who has the perfect soldier shave u00f0u009fu0092u00afA post shared by Harshvardhan Rane harshvardhanrane onSep 2 2018 at 839am PDTView this post on InstagramMy valentinesday with my dateu00f0u009fu0090u0083 I mark this day by going out on a date with this lovely lady in the picture as today i pack up shooting for my second Hindi film PALTAN with the one and only legend JPdutta sir nidhiduttaofficial i hv not seen a warriorrock star of a daughter like u in a long time Thank you cast crew amp universe u00f0u009fu0092u00abA post shared by Harshvardhan Rane harshvardhanrane onFeb 14 2018 at 741am PSTWe see a lot of pictures of your jeep on social media What makes it so specialThis jeep is really close to my heart After my first film down South I did not get any film for three years because they wanted me to play a villain and I did not want to do a negative character Heroes inspire me not the antagonists then why should I play somebody that wont inspire anyone Then the producers asked me to sit at home In this entire process I got broke completely had nothing to eat The boy that I had hired for me Laxman in 2011 he would get food dosa for me to eat I couldnt pay my team That was the time when I started doing carpentry I would retexture them and sell There was one thing for sure that I would do something inspirational In 2013 finally the producers came back and said You do the heros role and they gave me four films 2014 was practically the year where I really started working and the jeep that I brought was from that money Even the number of my jeep is 2014 Im very close to it because its my expression of freedom There are no seats behind no mats no music system its an empty jeep but very powerful and an independent one So I take it for all my trips I sleep in that It also has 20 litres of water in it I can also cook in it Its like my moving house I dont lock my jeep So people go inside click pictures and send it to me I would never buy a house I have an irritation and Im allergic to the walls of houses For me my jeep is everything I like staying in that I travel in it for big parties and events The other one is my bike I am crazy for them Therefore I went and purchased a bike with my first pay cheque from JP sir The moment I received it I rushed to BMWs office I handed over the cheque to them and asked to give the best model So they gave me an r90 scrambler After purchasing that again people started taunting that you could have bought a house with your signing amount I believe in fulfilling my own dreams People also suggest that I have a girlfriend but I have been single for the last 11 years I like this life with my jeep bike and freedomBut there must have been a point in your life where you have had to gather yourself all over again after breakdowns What do you do in such a situationMore than we getting demotivated its our family and friends who kind of puts pressure on us I believe that we all are very courageous and can do anything But family and friends keep on asking about your next step And you succumb to that pressure but I never had that pressure I never made too many friends neither here nor down south While I was working as a delivery boy 2004 I had gone to deliver a helmet and the client was none other than John Abraham and we connected instantly He invited me to an event that night and I took my girlfriend Minnakshi Das along She is now John sirs manager We had broken up but we still live together thats a different story altogether I dont think theres any point in my life where I have lost patience I dont have any such demands that would leave me pressurized I dont carry any baggage in my life Neither do I want to be overtly politically correct I dont want to hide my feelings As a kid I wanted to say what I want and that expression has got me till hereDo you feel left out at times at certain events or Bollywood gatheringYeah many times But eventually they all come around Im very objective People make fun of my clothes that what is he wearing He always wears the same shoes But I have no shame in wearing casual clothes to events or repeating them because this is what I have earned This is definitely not my fathers money This is what I can easily carry If I feel that I am being left out I do express myself But thats okay I have just started my journey Therell be a lot of times where I will not get my due but thats okay Its a long life and I will make up for it with my work and persistence definitely I dont know about talent but Im very persistent Talent maybe Ill learn with time I believe if more than acting capabilities I stay honest to my job and if I consistently want to improve I think I will do okayYour first film down South was a Telugu film Any offers from there or how would you strike a balance between both the film industriesLike I said I never forget the person who offered me my first meal So Telugu film industry is the first one who gave me exposure on the big screen I can never forget that I am always grateful for it In fact just a few days ago I went there at night shot for four hours and came back for Paltans promotion Nobody is even aware of it I havent even uploaded any pictures because my producer will get a heart attack laughs thinking where is he roaming in Hyderabad I can never even think of not doing a Telugu film They are my school they gave me the discipline This is my due to them that I am always available and I will always be interested in doing Telugu filmsHow did you learn the languageWhen you dont have food to eat and money in the pocket you learn everything I come from a remote area near Chambal in Madhya Pradesh where you would start sweating if had to speak two lines in English Now I have learned the language Although its not fluent enough kaam chal jaata hai work gets done When you are literally hungry youll do anything Learning a language is a very small thing Necessity is really the mother of an urge to learn something newAlso ReadArjun Rampals Personal Trainer Accompanied During The Shoot Of PaltanCatch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates