Indian celebrity chef and actor Ranveer Brar's journey to stardom

Gulf News

Indian celebrity chef and actor Ranveer Brar, who will soon be seen alongside Bollywood powerhouse Kareena Kapoor in a new murder mystery, believes there are only two things that truly matter in life.  Read the full story here: https://gulfnews.com/entertainment/bollywood/from-kitchen-to-cinema-indian-celebrity-chef-ranveer-brars-journey-to-stardom-1.98071881  See more videos at https://gulfnews.com/videos Read more Gulf News stories here: https://bit.ly/2HLJ2km  Subscribe to Gulf News on YouTube and watch more of our videos: https://www.youtube.com/user/GulfNewsTV  #UAEnews #Indian #RanveerBrar

Transcript

00:00Good afternoon. I am in conversation with chef and actor Ranbir Brar. He is a man who

00:13wears several hats. He is also a multi-hyphenate. So I am not going to ask you the very obvious

00:18question actor or a chef. I think it's a chef definitely. But it's so nice to see you reinvent

00:23yourself like this Ranbir.

00:25No, I just feel like I was saying it's just one life, right? And eventually it's all roles

00:32that we play. We play the role of a dad, we play the role of a husband, we play the role

00:37of a son, we play the role of a chef. Eventually life's about roles we play, right? So why

00:44not act out those roles?

00:45Right. And I have to say you do look like an actor though with your lanky figure. But

00:51I see you more in a gritty, dark, crime kind of series. Am I totally wrong or should we

00:57put the word out there?

00:58Everybody sees me like that. There is no chance of me getting a lead, a romantic lead because

01:05everybody, you know, people look at me and say negative, grey, slotted.

01:10So sad, really. I think I'm the only one who saw that in you.

01:14No, no. Story of my life.

01:17Story of your life where you are immediately slated a villain. Isn't that a good thing

01:21or a bad thing?

01:22I love it. I love it. Where else in real life you don't get to be a villain. So I absolutely

01:30love it. I initially thought there's this thing about negative, negative characters

01:35and this, that. But the more I navigate them, the more I get to navigate grey, which, you

01:41know, in real life, especially as Indians, we like black and white. We don't like navigating

01:46the grey. Our television is black or white. There is no grey. There is no Game of Thrones.

01:53Thank God for that.

01:56And that is why I absolutely love playing these negative characters, at least living

02:02these negative characters to understand where they're coming from, to navigate their grey.

02:10And I'm enjoying it.

02:11No, no. Nicole Kidman in an interview said she played a woman who was abused in a marriage.

02:16So, apparently after every day of the session, she used to come home and break eggs just

02:20to get it out of the system. Do you have such a process or no?

02:24Yeah, no. So, so the thing is, you know, some parts where sort of, I, I think I get an advantage

02:32or a head start is because I've done enough television. So, there's an on off button,

02:39right? The camera goes on, I go on, the camera goes off.

02:43You switch off.

02:44I switch off.

02:45That's more from my earlier training of being 11 years, being in front of the camera. So,

02:50I have learned to switch off like that. And even if the character stays inside me, I trust

02:57the character to leave at the right time and leave the best inside of me, which is, which

03:05is something that I thought was impossible. But it has happened to me and I, you know,

03:10and that's why I've sort of started liking this whole idea about acting.

03:14Really? Well, and he chose the best. I feel Hansal Mehta should start a masterclass or

03:20an acting school because I love talking to him even. Just talking to him, I'm like, oh

03:24God, he knows so much more about cinema, people. And he truly cares about what you think, which

03:29I don't know whether many filmmakers do genuinely care. I just feel he does. In your case, is

03:34that why you, is there a good rapport between you two?

03:37Yeah, he loves food, right?

03:38Yeah, so he just loved your food.

03:39Yeah, he loves food. So, that's a great conversation point for the both of us to jam. And it starts,

03:49it started from there, his love for food. Even when we were shooting Modern Love Mumbai,

03:54all the food was actually cooked and we waited till the food got cooked. So, his love…

03:59So, it was not like plastics?

04:00No, no, nothing.

04:01No, no, it was authentic. I think everybody…

04:03We cooked, I have cooked 20 kilos of Nihari in Modern Love Mumbai. You know, I always

04:08tell him, sir, you have done this on purpose, just to make sure you get Ranveer's recipe

04:12of Nihari out.

04:13He finally did.

04:14He did.

04:15He did and he cooked it and he sent me a picture and he said, look.

04:18Does he make a mean Nihari now?

04:19He makes a mean, he makes a super mean Nihari. He's an amazing cook.

04:22He's an amazing cook.

04:23So, that's where we connect. I think our connection starts from food, all things fine, music,

04:29and then it's just easier. There's a certain trust that builds post that. Also, what I

04:35absolutely love about him is that he very strongly believes, not just for the sake of

04:40it, that creativity is a collaborative process. He believes in at least listening to you and

04:49collaborating to create the best. And that I think is, as a creative individual myself,

04:56these are values that you learn to really appreciate.

04:59Acha! So, you did learn from it. What about cooking in the kitchen, what kind of skills

05:04did it help you to act? Like what techniques did you bring? Because I feel kitchen is equally

05:09stressful. I feel that's the pressure point there. I love watching all these shows and

05:13I feel, I wish I was in one of them where you throw a knife. You are not the knife throwing

05:18chef, I know.

05:19No, I used to be at one point in time.

05:21Really? You are down to management issues. I love it. Rage issues are good.

05:25Yeah. So, no, I mean, when you are young, you sort of want to prove yourself to the

05:29world. When you are, when you cross 45, you are like, it is what it is. But no, but I

05:37think kitchen is a sort of, it's a glimpse of life all put together. You know, and it's

05:44a euphoric glimpse of life. The highs are really high, the lows are really low, you

05:49know. So, yes, if you are a chef, it is actually life training. So, you experience certain

05:59emotions that you can only experience while acting. So, we call it a range. We talk about

06:09range in acting. You sort of get to experience that range in a kitchen between the highs

06:14and the lows. And then the rest is up to you. How much do you modulate it and let out?

06:20But yes, I strongly believe these are very intense and powerful places which make you

06:30experience life.

06:31You know, it teaches you life skills, I think, right? Being in a kitchen, there's always

06:34even and also managing people. I think it teaches you people management skills more

06:38than anything, right?

06:40It makes you, like I said, it makes you a people watcher.

06:44You know, and observation is very important to being an actor itself. So, whether it is

06:50your staff or whether it is the people who eat your food, it's just, you know, you're

06:56always looking for that first, first reaction. When somebody sits on a table, you're also

07:03trying to understand, ladki aaya hai, you know, has he had a fight. So, you're always

07:08people watching. You're always people watching. And, you know, like I said, observation is

07:13the fuel of any actor. So, it just helps.

07:16It really did. You also signed on to a second project. First project, I thought, was just

07:20a shot in the dark, Hansil Mehta, let's take a risk on him for your niharis, of course.

07:24We know why. But the second one, that shows faith, mister, that shows faith. And coming

07:31from Hansil Mehta, he's a, I mean, he may look very gentle and very nice, but he knows

07:36what he's doing. So, did that, was it a sense of validation for you, Ranbir?

07:42No. No. Sense of validation is when he will come to me and say, you did a good job.

07:50He hasn't said that yet? No, no. So, like you said, he is a very gentle

07:55person, but when he's behind that monitor with his headphones on, he's a different guy.

08:02He's on the job. Really?

08:04And all he will say is, close-up card do. You know, so that, yeah, but that's, that's

08:11the beauty of it. And then when, when he's off work and he's sitting down having, you

08:15know, a conversation with you, it's a different person. So, jab woh bolenge na, ki tune achcha

08:19kaam kiya, that probably will be a sense of validation.

08:21Okay. That's yet to come though. What about from Kareena Kapoor Khan, who I feel looks

08:26very effortless when she acts. And she seems like when she walks around, fashion comes

08:30effortlessly to her. I feel you are more, you calculate things, right? So, was that

08:35pharmacy or something? I'm an over-thinker. Yeah, I'm an over-thinker.

08:39I have to run a scenario many times in my head to, to sort of not just, not just create

08:50a course of action, but just look at all possible scenarios and react accordingly. But effortless

09:00Effortlessness is just, you know, you used the right word. I think the effortlessness

09:04with which Kareena works is outstanding. It takes you back as well, because it looks

09:10like some people write effortlessly. Some people have to think, they have to, they need

09:14a quiet spot, they need a darkroom or seven M&Ms.

09:18I'm assuming that there's a process behind their effortlessness as well, you know.

09:22You want to believe. Yeah, because you know, how can, itna saara

09:25talent kaise ho sakta hai yaar? It's just not fair.

09:28It's not fair. But in your case, Voto, what's your process

09:31like? Have you discovered your acting process? Sounds very serious, but it's not, I'm sure.

09:36Nahi, I haven't. For me, again, I like to sort of understand the character and have

09:46a complete backstory to the character, a complete understanding of the character. Not necessarily,

09:53you don't necessarily talk about it, but then understanding the character, creating

09:59that character in my head is a really important part of what I do. And a lot of times when

10:09you're sitting on an airport in crowded areas, you see those characters that either you've

10:15played or you've seen in a movie, or you imagine how they would react to certain scenarios.

10:22That's it, you just start sort of spending time with the character. And something, when

10:28the camera rolls, with trial and error, you sort of feel that, hey, this is the right

10:33fabric. Yeah.

10:34This is, Hansa sir bolte na, yeh soor sahi hai, so aapko soor pakad lete hain.

10:39I see. Masterchef must have kind of helped you, right? Because I've been on Masterchef

10:44Australia, by the way, on one of the episodes when they shot at the Atlantis, and it is

10:49the most boring experience of my life. You just have to sit and pretend to eat. I'm like,

10:53is that what we're doing? And I'm like, for the chefs, for you. And I saw all the celebrity

10:58chef and they edited so well. It's beautifully edited. But man, it's a boring process. Do

11:04you find that, you don't have to say it's a boring process. Did it help you? Like just

11:08the patience bit of it?

11:11Yeah, I think so for me, Masterchef, you know, how it really helps is, you get, you have

11:19to, you have to react real time.

11:22Okay. Right. It's captured.

11:24Yeah. Yeah. So, I think that, you know, that it's not stand and stir cooking, where you're

11:30looking at the camera and saying, you know, aaj yeh banayenge, yeh banayenge. You have

11:34to react real time. The other person can react any way they want. So, the alertness

11:41or the on-camera presence that a reality show like Masterchef demands, that makes you a

11:48better professional. Because you can't sleep, right? Because it's not going to be edited.

11:54And it's unfair that somebody is sort of expecting you to react and you're zoned out. That I

12:00think is the, is the, is the, is the beauty I take back from Masterchef.

12:04Oh really? And you're happy with the way your, your life as a chef and perhaps, you know,

12:10being a multi-hyphenate to shaping up. Are you like, all for it?

12:13So, I never really planned for this anyways, you know, so whatever I…

12:17You never thought all, like all, yeah, it's all fate. It's fate accordingly.

12:22But yeah, it's fate. Who would have thought? I never acted in a single play in school,

12:26yeah.

12:27No way.

12:28Pah sachhi.

12:30Come on. I'm just kidding. No, no, seriously. So, there's just everything just happening

12:34to you organically. Even starting a restaurant in Dubai, it is kismet, is it?

12:40Kismet.

12:41Really?

12:42Yeah, there's only two things that matter in life. A good korma and good kismet.

12:46I'm going to put that on a t-shirt. So, tell me like, what was the reaction of the people

12:51trying your food? By the way, your paneer with the sun-dried tomato, I thought, looked,

12:56it was amazing.

12:58It was spot on.

13:00But you need to tell me, like, were you happy with their reaction? Is it stressful? Is it

13:02exam time?

13:03Yeah, no, it is exam. See, there are… the good and the bad is that everybody, you know,

13:10will say the food is good. You are the one who is to find the faults, right? So, my job

13:17is never to accept that the food is good.

13:19Okay.

13:20Because if I do that, then I have nothing to take back and tell these guys on places

13:24to improve. So, while the reaction is the food is good, sort of the probing is always,

13:29yeah, but this, I think this can be a little better.

13:32Okay.

13:33But I think the sun-dried tomato could have been pastier. It's a little too chunky.

13:36Oh, I've seen it. It wasn't. I'm telling you. It was the right pieces of chunks in

13:42there. No, no, no. But well done. And are you happy? Because there's so many restaurants

13:46have, you know, opening up, mushrooming in Dubai. I'm finding it difficult to keep up.

13:51Honestly. So, it takes a very brave man. And I know that you guys are brave. It's a gamble, right?

13:56It is stupid or brave.

13:58Stupid or brave. Then I want to believe in the latter, that you are brave. But tell me,

14:03like, were you scouting as well? Because so many Michelin-starred restaurants here.

14:08No, no scouting. You know, I was shooting for Masterchef in Abu Dhabi. These guys came

14:13and met and they said, well, this is what it is. I said, but I don't want to do this.

14:18And then my wife said, hey, why don't you? Right sort of people, right sort of place.

14:24I said, let's do it. And then if we're doing it, then let's not just sort of wet our feet.

14:30Let's just dive deep in. Yeah. So, we dived in. You really do it. You're right here looking

14:36at everything and seeing everything. And Dipya was telling me as well, you've been here looking

14:41at everything. It goes, it goes to perfection, right?

14:45All of us are getting older, right? The reality is…

14:49I was not older. Okay, okay, fine.

14:52It's like me. It sounds like me. Forty-two, I keep telling my kids, oh God, I'm going to die sometime.

14:57I'm saying the chances that life is going to give us, as time passes, we really learn

15:03to appreciate the chances that we get, the opportunities that we get. And we want to

15:07give our hundred percent to those. The level of carelessness when you're, or the nonchalance

15:13when you're 25 versus when you're 45 is different. So, I just want to sort of, you know, at least

15:18give it my best. That's the thought. Okay, brilliant. But you've done so well.

15:23Thank you so much for talking to us. And I really hope your acting career also takes

15:27off, because that's what fascinates us. Because it's so lovely to see somebody try it out,

15:31try things out. And even if the critics are mean, it's okay. I'm sure they'll, we can always…

15:38No, that's the last thing. As you know, being a chef teaches you one thing, be shameless.

15:46So that is, like you said, kitchen lessons are life lessons. If you let everything get

15:51to you, you can't be a chef. So, that is ingrained in our genes. You know, everybody do their

15:59thing, say their thing, you shamelessly carry on doing what you want to do.

16:01I love it. Here is to being shameless for another decade. And don't consider yourself

16:05old, sir. I feel old. Forty-five? That's it. And you've done so much. Well done you.

16:11Thank you. So proud. And thank you for that wonderful paneer with the perfect sun-dried

16:15tomatoes. I promise.

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