Have criticised toxic masculinity from the beginning: Ayushmann Khurrana

Actor Ayushmann Khurrana on Tuesday said he has challenged the idea of "toxic masculinity" right from the beginning of his career and is confident his upcoming film Dream Girl 2 will take the discourse to another level.

At the trailer launch of Dream Girl 2, the actor was asked to comment on how Karan Johar's latest film Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani challenges gender stereotypes by showing two men -- characters played by Ranveer Singh and Tota Roy Choudhury -- perform Kathak on "Dola Re Dola", a song from Devdas featuring Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Madhuri Dixit Nene.

Khurrana, who plays the role of a cross-dresser in Dream Girl 2, said he is happy to see the audience accept a film like Rocky Aur Rani... “From the beginning, I've criticised toxic masculinity. I'm glad that Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani is doing well. They have set a good ground to address toxic masculinity because our film is going to take it to the next level.

"It's good to see people accepting these kinds of films on social causes or trying to say something about breaking stereotypes. It's not just the messaging in the film (Dream Girl 2), it has a lot of comedy as well," the actor told reporters in Mumbai.

Khurrana said he is glad to count himself in the company of actors like Kamal Haasan, Govinda, and Kishore Kumar, who have in the past transformed into a woman in different movies.

"You take inspiration from Kamal Haasan sir in Chachi 420 or Govinda in Aunty No 1. A lot of actors have done this, including Kishore Kumar ji. So, actors have got an opportunity every decade to play characters like these. I'm glad I got it too with this film (Dream Girl 2), which says a lot in a light-hearted, fun way," he added.

Dream Girl 2 is a sequel to the actor's 2019 comedy-drama, in which he featured as Karam, a man whose female voice impersonation as Pooja begets the attention of others. The follow-up movie also stars Ananya Panday.

Dream Girl 2 also stars Annu Kapoor, Paresh Rawal, Vijay Raaz, Manoj Joshi, Rajpal Yadav, Seema Pahwa, Manjot Singh, and Abhishek Banerjee.

Backed by Balaji Motion Pictures, the film is set to be released on August 25 in theatres.