Ayushmann Khaurrna: Sweet Smell of Success

Poet, philosopher, singer, actor… one man several facets… Rahul Gangwani catches up with the man of the hour Ayushmann Khaurrna

- Rahul Gangwani

He’s an outsider who’s made sharp inroads. Apart from talent, he possesses a discerning eye. To sieve the chaff from the grain. He prides over his sense of script and a ear for a good story. Early in his career, he understood the importance of being different to be noticed amidst a surge of clones. His yen for the real, the extraordinary in the ordinary has made him a mascot for middle-of-the road cinema. He’s been game to delve in taboo topics – sperm donation, erectile dysfunction and even confronting the discomfort about the sexuality of one’s parents as in the comedy drama, Junglee Pictures’ Badhaai Ho. With the thriller AndhaDhun, he’s ventured into the chills and thrills genre and yet again undone the mould. That he should be associated with good films is the promise he’s made to himself and the audience. As a person too he’s a work in progress. If theatre encouraged humility in him, a near-tragic experience has brought in a certain detachment, an equanimity, which the vagaries of showbiz can no longer ruffle. Wife Tahira Kashyap’s tryst with cancer has truly bonded the couple further. Ayushmann’s understood where the ‘core’ of his existence lies. His has been a homecoming to eternal truth and love… Excerpts…

BAREILLY KI BARFI, SHUBH MANGAL SAAVDHAN, ANDHADHUN AND BADHAAI HO… THIS SEEMS TO BE THE BEST PHASE OF YOUR CAREER?