Family, film and good friends

by MOHNISH SINGH

SONAM KAPOOR TALKS VEERE DI WEDDING AND HER LOVED ONES

WORK is worship for fashionista Sonam Kapoor, and the fact she jumped straight into promotions of her new movie, Veere Di Wedding, right after walking down the aisle with boyfriend, Anand Ahuja, on May 8, shows films are her ruling passion.

Veere Di Wedding, helmed by Shashanka Ghosh, is a very special film for Sonam for various reasons. Firstly, it is bankrolled by her sister Rhea Kapoor. Secondly, it reunites her with best friend, Swara Bhasker, after Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (2015).

And thirdly, it gives her an opportu­nity to share the screen space with the diva she has admired all her life, Ka­reena Kapoor Khan. In an interview with Eastern Eye, Sonam talks candid­ly about her new film, what makes her be friends with Swara, how working with an all-women led team is differ­ent from doing a regular movie, and her friendship with Kareena...

Right after your marriage with Anand Ahuja, you jumped straight into promotions of Veere Di Wed­ding. Did you get any time to spend with your in-laws in Delhi?

No. No one gave me time. I stayed in Delhi just for one or two days, then had to come back to Mumbai for work.

What were the one or two days like which you spent with your new fam­ily or, let’s say, sasural?

Honestly, I feel completely at home at my in-laws place. I don’t like the term sasural. That is my home. Since the day I have been with Anand, his par­ents have been amazing. Whenever I am with them, I never feel uncomfort­able even for a single moment. Swara (Bhasker), who has met them a couple of times, knows they are very sweet.

Your friend and co-star Swara Bhasker is also from Delhi, and now you also have a Delhi connection…

(Laughs) Swara has got an agenda now. She says that it’s very great that I got to marry a man in Delhi because whenever she starts her political ca­reer, she will have a friend in Delhi.

You just gave away her future plans...

We keep doing that in real life.

Your new film is ti­tled Veere Di Wed­ding, and you have just got married in real life. Is that a coincidence?

This film was about to begin its pro­duction in 2015, and at that time I was not even engaged. I got engaged in June-July last year, just before the film went on the floors. So I was already engaged when we started shooting for this film. It is, I guess, a very big coin­cidence that it happened like that.

You play a character called Avni. Do you relate with her in the movie?

Avni is very different from me. But she is today’s girl. See, in one way or the other, I relate to each and every char­acter I play on-screen.

Of all the four girls in the movie, you seem to play the most sensible one. Were you the same with your friends in college?

I did not go to college; I have studied till 12th standard only. So, yeah, I had two best friends in junior college. I was always the sensible one. It is really a great thing that I am still quite sensi­ble (laughs).

In one of his recent interviews, your brother, Harshvardhan Kapoor, said the person he is very close to in the family is your dad, Anil Kapoor. Who are you closest to?

My sister (Rhea Kapoor).

After a lot of struggle, women-cen­tric films seem to have finally found their footing in Hindi cinema. To­day, you don’t necessarily need a male star to front a film. How do you see the change that has happened in the industry over the years?

I think all the films I have chosen in the past five years have been quite different. A typical Bollywood actress would have never touched them. But now things have changed. The atmosphere is such where you can gather courage to do those sorts of films. I don’t necessarily need a big hero for my films to do well.

Which is your favourite film based on friendship?

Anand (1971). I think that is a very beautiful film.

Your friendship with Kareena Kapoor Khan is the talk of the town. We could see in the trailer that you share a great bond in Veere Di Wedding as well. Could you tell how you became good friends?

I have known her my whole life. But we became good friends in last eight or nine years.

Your home productions boast of great music, be it Aisha (2010) or Khoobsurat (2014). Tell us about the music of Veere Di Wedding...

I think it’s my favourite album. It’s amazing. There is something for eve­rybody. I love Aa Jao Na, which is sung by Arijit Singh.

Why are you good friends with Swara Bhasker?

I am friends with Swara because I have not met a man or woman in the industry who is as like-minded as her. We are very similar in more ways than one. I think it’s very important to have kind of friends who think similarly.

It is very important to be friends with like-minded people. She is very courageous too. So there are a lot of qualities in her I like. So, why not be friends with who is like you? (smiles)

Veere Di Wedding has a team of fe­male producers, including your sis­ter Rhea Kapoor and Ekta Kapoor. How is working with an all-women led team different from other mov­ies that you usually do?

They (producers) all were very crea­tively involved with the project. But what I have realised while working on this set is that they don’t categorise people. I have worked in many films where actors are categorised in A, B or C categories.

If he is the hero of the film, he will stay in a certain hotel. The actress will stay in some other hotel and all of that. Crew A will have something better to eat than crew B. This never happened on our set. And I think that is some­thing which is amazing about my sister because we have been raised like that. Our parents have always taught us that no one is above and below us.

How was it to work with director Shashanka Ghosh?

I have done Khoobsurat with him before. I think he is one of the best directors I have ever worked with. I believe I have improved a lot since Khoobsurat. I am at ease when he is the director. If I have giv­en a good performance in Veere Di Wedding, it’s just because of him. During the shoot of the film, I used to say to Swara just listen to what he says blindly because he knows what he is talking about.

With Pad Man (2018), you tried to give a positive mes­sage to the women folk. What message would you like to give to them this time around with Veere Di Wedding?

To be whatever you want to be. You don’t have to apologise for an­ything. If you want to marry, get married. If you want a divorce from your husband, go for it. If you want a live-in relationship, just do it. If you want to elope with some­body, go. Whatever you want to do, whatever you want to wear, just do it.

If you want to drink beer or smoke, or for that matter you don’t want to do it, that’s okay. Feel free to do what you want to do.

• Veere Di Wedding is in cinemas now