Acting and me? Why not! Filmmaker Karan Johar reveals his interest in turning actor; but says, won’t make a film for himself

Acting and me? Why not!

Filmmaker Karan Johar reveals his interest in turning actor; but says, won’t make a film for himself

If filmmaker Karan Johar seems to be smiling more than usual these days, he certainly has enough reasons to do so. The producer’s had two back-to-back hits in the first two months itself, with one of them, Agneepath, kickstarting the 100-crore bankroll at the box office this year, and has a host of releases lined up ahead. And while buzz of the filmmaker teaming up with actor Hrithik Roshan again for his ambitious big-screen adaptation of the book The Immortals of Meluha with the star, apparently, playing Shiva refuses to die down, the filmmaker insists it’s too early to talk about it. “We are still in the initial stages and nothing has been finalised yet, let us first decide on director, screenplay, and all that, then the casting will begin,” says Karan. “The nature of the story is such that it needs extreme attention to detailling. It needs to be mounted on a huge scale and a really large magnitude is required to do it complete justice,” he adds. But just as there’ve been talks of him working with Hrithik again, there’ve also been rumours of Johar not wanting to work with actor Priyanka Chopra. “If there’s a role that suits her, we will work together again,” says KJo dismissing the rumours. But he is quick to add that he however doesn’t see himself creating a role just to cast the star either. “We just don’t do that, that’s all. It’s always the role that decides the actor,” he insists. And is good friend actor Shah Rukh Khan an exception? “I’ve always said that Shah Rukh is the brother I never had. He knows me pretty well to not expect it and I know him well enough to not take advantage of that,” he smiles. The filmmaker, however, admits that he is often inspired for his characters by the streaks that the star shows, and is hoping to soon direct him again. For now though, he is busy and in middle of many things. The producer in him is proud of his bouquet of assorted films right from Dostana sequel to Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani, while as a director, his focus is completely on his upcoming film Student of the Year (SOTY), apart from prepping up as the host for the next season of his chat-show on TV. Is there no temptation to direct one of the other films himself. “No,” Karan is quick to reply. “The film is their vision, and I trust them with it,” he adds. As for his own vision, the filmmaker says they are trained at making films that move people. “Whether it’s making them laugh or cry, our point is to make sure that they carry home the characters long after leaving the theatres. We are trying to strike that odd balance between path-breaking and entertaining. The industry is in a really interesting phase for all — audience, filmmakers and actors. And are there plans to turn actor? “I would love to act. If I get an interesting role I will definitely take the plunge. I don’t see myself making a film starring myself though. I want to be directed by other filmmakers. I am waiting for the right role.”