Fire Starter

I'm the trouble starter, punkin' instigator I' m the fear addicted, Danger illustrated

- Namrata Kedar

The boombox blares as he cruises into his vanity van wearing a LedZepp T-shirt layered with a leather jacket over a pair of oxblood velvet tracks. “I love, love, love my music, and ‘Firestarter’ is my all-time favourite song,” confesses Ranveer Singh. Perhaps it’s the title, perhaps it’s the lyrics, but this track by Prodigy describes this powerhouse perfectly.

Back from London that morning, we caught Singh for precisely three hours before he was to jet off again. “I got back this morning and went straight to dub until 6am to complete the movie that is rushing against the clock right now.” Sleep deprived, but not a hint of it to show, Singh is his dynamic self, yes, but patience is a virtue he has laudably mastered.

One shoot, four looks and obliging to a few selfie-requesting fans later, we head to the airport. His car is numbered 6969. “I was so chuffed about my hair today,” he exclaims. My hair is pin straight, so to get these curls is amazing.” He speaks slowly, in a low baritone, enunciating each word. “I miss my handlebar moustache, he says as he clutches a copy of his last Grazia cover in December 2015. “It was perfect. If it were up to me, I would look perhaps like the way I did in Ram Leela – the beard, the handlebar moustache and the long hair. I know my facial features are not silver screen worthy, but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that my hair is my best feature. Jo bhagwaan ne naak mein nahi diya, woh baal mein diya. But, I guess my commitment to any character is paramount,” he says.