00:00Congratulations, the film is about to release, how does that feel?
00:03Oof!
00:04Wow!
00:05Nerve-wracking?
00:06Yeah, it is, it is.
00:07But also very excited.
00:09It's a little ticklish.
00:11And a lot of hard work has gone into it.
00:13It's been an effort by a big team for over four years.
00:17So finally, we were waiting for this day
00:19when we'd be able to bring this audience.
00:21And finally, when they're coming, we can't wait.
00:23Yeah.
00:24You know, this question is for both of you.
00:26Periodical dramas, they do really well
00:29in terms of, like, for the audience at the box office.
00:32What makes it so appealing, you know, universally for everybody?
00:35I think, I mean, talking more as an audience,
00:38I think it's the fact that you,
00:40there's an opportunity to get transported into a world
00:42I was just thinking about that.
00:44I was like, yeah.
00:45So, maybe it's that.
00:47Like, you feel a slight change.
00:49If it's done right,
00:51then you do feel that, okay, we've been transported
00:53from our daily lives to a different world.
00:56That, I feel, is quite charming about a historical period.
00:59Also, you know, I've studied history in college.
01:02I'm a major in Indian history.
01:04And about Sambhaji, we've only read so little.
01:07Chhatrapati Sambhaji.
01:08Chhatrapati Sambhaji.
01:09And there's not much known.
01:11And when you're actually studying
01:13or when you're doing a movie like Chhawa
01:15where the character is, like, so big
01:17and then there's Yasubai, whose real name was Jeevubai.
01:20There's not much to research.
01:23So how do you build up a character like that?
01:25Both of you.
01:27See, firstly, it's unfortunate that
01:29a person like Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj
01:32is an unsung hero for us.
01:34It's about time that we, you know,
01:36we pull out these unsung heroes
01:38and make them celebrated heroes.
01:40Especially with the medium of internet,
01:42our cinema going global.
01:45So everything is set for us to bring forward our true heroes.
01:48Historical period drama is always very challenging.
01:51Not just for the actors, but for the director,
01:53for the producer, for everybody on set.
01:56Whoever's involved in the making of this film.
01:58Because its authenticity becomes very important.
02:01Its scale becomes important.
02:03You have to create a whole world.
02:05Nothing is available for you.
02:07You have to create all those things from scratch.
02:09So that detailing, that precision,
02:11everything becomes very challenging.
02:13And as actors, for our characters,
02:15it's a responsibility.
02:17Because they have existed.
02:20And if we are bringing their story after 350 years,
02:23then there is a reason for it.
02:25That their glory, their sacrifice,
02:27with the same sensitivity,
02:29with the same responsibility,
02:32portraying them,
02:34that responsibility, it's sometimes a little bit of,
02:37you know, it scares you too.
02:39So all those things, it just makes it a very challenging
02:42thing to take on.
02:44But I think I can proudly say on behalf of the entire team
02:48that we really have put our best foot forward
02:50as much as we could.
02:52So Vicky, you gave it your all to this character, right?
02:55Like, you did so much, you lifted 100 kgs,
02:57you worked hard, you gained 25 kgs, everything.
03:01How much is too much for an actor to invest in a role
03:04when you know that you have an off-screen life as well?
03:07There's too much you're giving in for a character.
03:09I'll tell you honestly, if you make a film on such a personality,
03:11you get an opportunity.
03:13Whatever you do, it will feel a little less.
03:15Because you can do the best from your end,
03:17but I'm sure if we go and make Chhawa today,
03:20I'll try to do something else,
03:22I'll try to give something else,
03:24because that's what it deserves.
03:26So yes, there was that circle from our side,
03:29and what Laxman sir had told me,
03:31that muscularly you have to look like,
03:33I can make the audience believe that you can fight a lion.
03:36There's a lot of action, so there will be training for that.
03:39It's real action, it's raw action.
03:41So there's no VFX in the action.
03:45Apart from that, there's horse-riding.
03:47He was very clear that I won't cheat,
03:49I won't compromise, it should be you only.
03:51So it takes time to prepare for that,
03:53whether it's language or anything else.
03:55So there's an overall prep for that,
03:58but it's also fun.
04:00Through this film, I know horse-riding,
04:03through this film, I know sword-fighting,
04:05through this film, I know that I can bring discipline
04:08into my life if I ever need it.
04:11What are the do's and don'ts.
04:14It's your own growth, while doing all of that.
04:18So it's much more than money and fame,
04:21that you also get through processes like this.
04:23Also Vicky, you've done films like Masaan,
04:26and there's Zara Hatke Zara Bachke,
04:28and then there's a film like Chhawa, Oori,
04:31where you maintain balance between this alpha male look,
04:35and then there's a character like Zara Hatke Zara Bachke.
04:39Is that a conscious choice that you balance this out?
04:41That's good of an actor, yes.
04:45As an actor, it is the quest,
04:48that if I can get to do as varied roles as possible,
04:52because, I don't know, it excites me,
04:55that's what really keeps me away from being complacent as an actor.
05:00And I truly feel that with every film,
05:03if I can feel more confident as an actor,
05:05it'll be great for me to go into the next film,
05:08with that confidence.
05:10That can only happen when I take up a challenge,
05:12which I in the beginning feel,
05:14that I can do this, how will I do this?
05:16And when you go through a process like that,
05:18and when you reach the finish line of that,
05:20you feel, yes, I can challenge myself further,
05:24I can take up a little bit different work.
05:26And I think today's audience also is expecting
05:28the actors, the directors, the filmmakers,
05:30to take up a challenge themselves first.
05:32They should feel that it mattered to them.
05:35They also push the boundaries a little bit,
05:37so that, I mean, we can't expect the audience
05:40to push the boundaries, that you keep giving us love,
05:42and we'll be complacent and be coming to you
05:45with the same kind of work.
05:47So, I think that's something that we need to
05:50give to the audience also as artists,
05:52that, okay, we're bringing to you different stories
05:54and different characters.
05:55Also, Vicky, from my first interview with you to now,
05:58so much has changed, you've attained superstardom,
06:00but there's this really nice person still in you.
06:03It's amazing to see that nice person still
06:06being in you, and you've not lost that.
06:09How is that, considering that so much has changed
06:12around you, and you're still that person?
06:14One thing that hasn't changed till date is that
06:16I still get marred from my mom.
06:18And till the day that that's going to be there,
06:20everything's going to be the same.
06:23I'm almost done with my interview.
06:25Is there anything else you'd like to add?
06:27No, just, to your wonderful audience,
06:29we would just like to say, 14th of February,
06:31our special film, Chhawa, is coming out.
06:34Please, please do come out with your families,
06:36your friends, your kids especially.
06:40It's a film that will give you very important information,
06:45but also will entertain you.
06:47We need to keep our heroes alive,
06:49and this is our small effort to do that.
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