Shah Rukh Khan, Vijay Sethupathi answer fan queries about ‘Jawan’

PTI, Sep 5, 2023, 8:08 PM IST

Mumbai: Ahead of the release of ”Jawan”, superstar Shah Rukh Khan and co-star Vijay Sethupathi have detailed their experiences of working on the Atlee directorial, which they said is filled with ”lots of action, high speed shots, dancing and good dialogues”.

In a new promotional video for the film, the two actors answered burning questions about the action-entertainer, which is set to be released in theatres countrywide on Thursday.

Titled ”Jawan – 7 Questions With Shah Rukh Khan & Vijay Sethupathi”, the video has been posted on the official social media handles of SRK’s banner Red Chillies Entertainment.

”There are so many questions people are asking and so many that they are not asking, we will answer both of them. How many questions? Seven, because there are seven days in a week, the rainbow has seven colours and I have seven looks in ‘Jawan’,” Shah Rukh said in the video.

Asked about how he decided to collaborate with Atlee, known for delivering hits such as ”Theri”, ”Mersal” and ”Bigil” with superstar Thalapathy Vijay, the 57-year-old actor said he first met the director during an IPL match between Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders a few years ago.

”Then COVID happened and I was sitting at home, he came to see me in Mumbai. He said, ‘I have a film and I found it very interesting because the first thing he told me was, ‘It’s you, sir, along with five girls and that’s my film because my wife Priya and myself really feel that you look the nicest when you have a bunch of ladies with you in a film.’ So I said ok.

”He said there is lots of action, high-speed shots, dancing, good dialogues and five girls. And that’s how ‘Jawan’ started,” Shah Rukh said.

Also starring Nayanthara, ”Jawan” is billed as a high-octane action thriller that outlines the emotional journey of a man who is set to rectify the wrongs in the society, according to the official synopsis.

Sethupathi, the star of films such as ”Super Deluxe”, ”Vikram Vedha” and ”96”, talked about how he landed the role of the antagonist, Kalee, in the movie.

 

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”I met SRK sir and Atlee at Nayanthara’s marriage. We had met in Australia already and I suddenly asked, ‘I want to be a bad guy in your film sir.’ Then he said, ‘We were also thinking about your past one year, so surprised that you also asked.’ So that’s how I got into this film,” the 45-year-old actor said.

Afterwards, Sethupathi said, he met Atlee in Mumbai and the filmmaker narrated the script to him.

”He narrated the script and I liked it. Whenever I play the villain, I’m not the villain. The hero is the villain because I’m on my path and someone is disturbing me, which means he’s the villain for me,” he added.

Throughout the promotion campaign of ”Jawan”, SRK and the film’s team have teased many faces of the actor from the movie.

Asked if he is playing a ”villain or hero or vill-hero” in the movie, the actor said, ”I don’t know. ‘Main accha hu, bura hu; punya hu ya paap hu. Ye khud se poochna kyuki mai bhi aap hu. (Ask yourself if I am good, bad, a virtue or a curse? Because, for better or worse, I am also you.) ”So it’s a common man doing uncommon things for the common good of everybody.” Sethupathi then shared his experience of collaborating Shah Rukh and said he has always been curious about the Bollywood superstar.

”Mostly my screen space is with SRK sir only… I like the way he gives interviews, his spontaneity, so I like to know more about him. How his thought process works, how his brain works and so I keep asking him questions,” he said.

Shah Rukh was then posed with a rhetorical question ‘Are you an action hero or just a guy with a great insurance policy?’ in a reference to the many stunts sequences the actor and the film’s team have pulled off in the movie.

”My actual life insurance policy is over. I had so many bruises that no one is willing to insure me,” he said.

However, the actor said, the real reason for him to do an action movie like ”Jawan” was his three children — Aryan, Suhana and AbRam.

”One day my eldest son and daughter told me, ‘You have to do films which are very cool for the youngest, AbRam.’ I thought the only cool thing he likes is anime, animation and action films. So I decided to be a superhero, then I thought I don’t look good in spandex.

”So without getting into spandex, I got into bandages and that’s why I did this action film. So honestly, I do action films because my kids get very impressed that I’m doing some cool things where I have six-pack abs and stuff like that,” he said.

Sethupathi was asked about how he prepared for his character in the movie and he replied that he is ”good at choosing scripts”.

”I know how to do it. I don’t want to bring anything else into my headspace, I believe that it spoils the artist in my mind which I do not want to do,” he added.

The final question to SRK was about his most memorable moment while shooting for the project.

”The moment was when I went to see the rushes at Atlee’s office in Mumbai. I went there and there is a shot where I am introduced as the bald hero and I do this (clapping action).

”I remember Atlee putting a lot of powder in my hand and I think I sneezed also doing that shot, but when I finally saw the shot, and that’s my moment for doing ‘Jawan’,” he added.

Sanya Malhotra, Priyamani, Girija Oak, Sanjeeta Bhattacharya, Lehar Khan, Aaliyah Qureshi, Ridhi Dogra, Sunil Grover and Mukesh Chhabra also appear in the movie in key roles.

A Red Chillies Entertainment presentation, “Jawan” is produced by Gauri Khan and co-produced by Gaurav Verma. It will hit the theatres on Thursday in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu languages.