Ram Charan Birthday Special - iQlik Interview
From ‘Chirutha’ to soon-to-be released ‘Zanjeer’ Ram Charan is honing the actor in him with every movie. Today (March 27th) is Charan’s birthday and Cherry shares his feelings candidly with iQlik Movies about his family, personal life and political aspirations.
iQlik Movies: Is there a habit of taking any resolutions for birthday?
Ram Charan: I don’t have such habit from the beginning. But I took a decision for this birthday. Earlier my father used to meet his fans frequently but as he got busy with politics he is not having enough time to do so. I feel like filling that gap. I decided to meet my fans on a select day every month.
iQlik: The recent ‘Baadshah’ Audio function led to the death of a fan due to stampede. What’s your take on this?
Charan: It’s not wrong to celebrate a function among the fans. But when we are inviting thousands of fans, care has to be taken to the utmost level to avoid such unforeseen incidents. For instance, 15,000 people attended my marriage. Even after the marriage, a special function has been arranged for fans where in 15,000 fans have attended. But nothing bad happened. Coming to ‘Baadshah’ I heard that the fan died outside the function. It seems that nothing happened inside the function area. If event management people had taken care of such things, these mishaps won’t repeat in future.
iQlik: You have hectic schedules shooting for ‘Zanjeer’ and ‘Yevadu’, but what about the family life?
Charan: We even forgot that we both got married! I am busy in Mumbai shooting for ‘Zanjeer’ and she is in Hyderabad busy with her own work. She is not having enough time to attend my shootings.
iQlik: Is Upasana not complaining?
Charan: She complains a lot. Luckily there is a best example in our home in the form of my mother. My mother comforts her by saying “These are very common things in a stars life…you have to slowly get used to it”. Fortunately Upasana understands my situation.
iQlik: How did you feel when you got the opportunity to do ‘Zanjeer’?
Charan: I was not even born when the original ‘Zanjeer’ got released. I heard of its greatness and was in awe of the character and even had my own doubts whether I could justify a film where the legend Amitabh Bachchan had breathed soul into its character. That’s why I took 8 months to give the green signal. I told my father about ‘Zanjeer’. He said “Even I did few movies in Hindi; artists should not have language barriers. It’s a good opportunity for you. Go ahead.” Later I told Apoorva Lakhia to narrate the full story. After listening to that I felt that there will be no better story other than this for me to get launched in Bollywood.
iQlik: Have you met Amitabh Bachchan after agreeing to do the movie?
Charan: I met him and said “I agreed to do your role but I don’t know much about the movie” He responded positively, “I heard the new story after its modifications. It’s good, go ahead and do it well” patted Amitabh Bachchan. I can’t forget his encouragement.
iQlik: It seems you have good rapport with Salman Khan!
Charan: I know Salman on personal level from almost 10 years. Earlier my father and Salman acted in a ‘Thumbs Up’ ad together. They both used to go to the shoot together. I know him, since then. Whenever I visit Mumbai I have to call him for sure. If I missed doing it, he comments me on a lighter note why I haven’t done so.
iQlik: Are ‘Zanjeer’ and ‘Yevadu’ releasing back to back?
Charan: Yes! both will release within a gap of 4 weeks. We haven’t decided yet which one will be released first. I have strong belief in the content of both the movies.
iQlik: Your father has become a central minister. If he asks you to campaign for 2014 elections, will you pitch in?
Charan: I am not interested in politics. But if my father wants me to do so, I will surely campaign.
iQlik: You seem to be very friendly with NTR. How did your friendship blossom?
Charan: I am friendly with everyone. People often think if there is competition between heroes, they won’t gel well with each other on a personal level. Often, it’s a misconception. We want to prove it wrong. After seeing ‘Magadheera’ Mahesh Babu called me to congratulate. If I like some others’ work, I too call them to appreciate. Last year, I invited NTR for dinner to our home for Diwali. Even we went to their home. All of us share good camaraderie.
iQlik: But isn’t there any competition to become no.1?
Charan: I won’t believe in number games. I always dream that my film should do well and at the same time I don’t feel like breaking the records of other heroes’ movies.
iQlik: During the ‘Nayak’ audio function you turned emotional and said that you consider media as a strand of hair!
Charan: It is the burst of emotion that is being suppressed from 3 years. After the elections, media started pinning us for wrong reasons. Badmouthing a good guy has hurt me a lot. I even asked Kalyan Babu (Pawan Kalyan) to counter those allegations. But he said “Why do we need to react?” but that day I felt strongly to put an end to the negative propaganda by media. Also I reacted only on the select media that made such claims. Don’t get me wrong, I am not against the whole media.
iQlik: Thank you Charan, once again we wish you a happy birthday!
Charan: Thank you so much!
