IT’S A QUIET, BREEZY evening in Juhu, the coastal suburb in Mumbai that’s home to some of the city’s most celebrated dwellers. While the Arabian Sea creates an illusion of calm outside, inside a suite at the JW Marriott actor Ajay Devgn is trying his best to quell the tantrums of his 12-year-old son, Yug, who’s having a bad day. Devgn doesn’t quite know what’s bothering the kid, who repeatedly hangs up the phone, only to call back again. “Can I please eat ramen?” Yug asks. Devgn cracks up, a sign that submission to this demand that’s masquerading as a request is inevitable. “Okay, but you gotta eat healthy for dinner.” The boy is happy. Devgn lights up another cigarette. “Let’s start.”
In a year that saw films clash with an unforgiving box office, Ajay Devgn had a prolific year and featured in three of the most successful films of last year: Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s magnum opus Gangubai Kathiawadi, S.S. Rajamouli’s juggernaut RRR, and Abhishek Pathak’s `200-crore-plus hit, Drishyam 2. There was Runway 34 that he directed, which didn’t do too well, and Thank God, a straight-to-streaming release that opened to mixed reviews. Not to forget the Disney+ Hotstar series, Rudra: The Edge of Darkness, an official remake of the Tom Ellis–starrer Lucifer. At a time when the notion of stardom itself is getting redefined, as the yardstick to measure it continues to evolve, Devgn has shown remarkable resilience as a bankable star who has never had to rely on a “comeback” film since he never really goes off-screen.
This story is from the February - March 2023 edition of GQ India.
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This story is from the February - March 2023 edition of GQ India.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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