'Singham Again' my rebirth as an actor: Arjun Kapoor

Big blockbuster movies have a way of reviving careers and Arjun Kapoor hopes the same happens with his portrayal of the main antagonist in Rohit Shetty's ‘Singham Again’, which he calls his “new starting point".

The action-drama franchise, headlined by Ajay Devgn, is the third film in the ‘Singham’ series, which started with 2011's ‘Singham’ and was followed by ‘Singham Returns’ in 2014.

The two movies along with Ranveer Singh's ‘Simmba’ (2018) and ‘Sooryavanshi’ (2021), starring Akshay Kumar, are part of Shetty's cinematic cop universe. They both feature in the movie alongside Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Tiger Shroff and Kapoor.

"I'm happy people are liking my work... Now is the new starting point. The rebirth or the redemption, whatever you want to call it, I think it starts now,” the actor told PTI in an interview.

Kapoor, who plays the modern-day version of Raavan, named Danger Lanka, in the movie, said he has always been a fan of Shetty's work, including hits like ‘Golmaal’, ‘Singham’, and ‘Simmba’. He was thrilled to be approached for the role.

"He trusted me and he took that chance and I hope I repaid his faith. I loved working on the film."

The 39-year-old actor, who made his debut in 2012 with ‘Ishaqzaade’, about two enemies-turned-star-crossed lovers, said the offer for ‘Singham Again’ came at the right time in his life.

"I was looking at a challenge and an opportunity to prove and push myself and grab my chance in a competitive environment... I thought this was the right opportunity.”

Kapoor has portrayed characters of varying shades right from the beginning whether it was his debut film or movies like ‘Ek Villain Returns’, ‘Gunday’, and ‘Aurangzeb’. But the actor said his portrayal in ‘Singham Again’ gave him a chance to go all out.

"I knew it's a blockbuster, a big-budget bonanza that people come to watch. If you have to go all the way there, you choose a film like this.

"Like, Ajay Devgn sir did 'Khakee', it's a big film in which he chose to play a villain, Saif (Ali Khan) did ‘Omkara', and Bobby (Deol) did 'Animal'. So, when you go for big films, you go to the extreme. The payoff is that the mainstream audience that has liked you as a positive will also like the negative thing."

Kapoor said he didn't approach his role as that of a demon king, Raavan, though the film is Shetty's interpretation of the epic ‘Ramayana’. In the film, the actor abducts Kareena Kapoor Khan's Avni, the wife of Devgn's honest cop Bajirao Singham.

"I didn't see it as playing Raavan, I thought of him as Danger Lanka. I was like, there's an interpretation of Ramayana in the film. Like, ‘Rang De Basanti' had the legend of Bhagat Singh, but it was about those characters. He (Shetty) was making the Ramayana the way he had imagined it.

"But, for me, the excitement was to play this uncontrollable mad man, who believes he is right. It is a delicious place to be at, you can do what you feel like. I did what I felt like, and that was the most exciting part of the film as an actor to do.”

Kapoor, also known for ‘Gunday’, ‘2 States’, and ‘Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar’, said he has become aware that he needs to take care of himself physically and mentally to deliver his best as an actor.

“When you're young, you can take on a lot. As time proceeds, I want to be clear about saying yes because I want to really go out there and do a film. So, the choices you're making on a day-to-day basis have to get better."

Kapoor believes his career took a hit in 2018 but with ‘Singham Again’ turning out to be a hit, he hopes to make better choices in the future.

“The last couple of years from 2018-2019, when I had a couple of films, and it didn't do it and then COVID-19 happened. Post COVID-19, things didn't really hit the spot.”

"I signed a couple of films, and not everything panned out perfectly. So for about five-six years... It's a long time before you feel any kind of connect with the audience. It's not about praise or hate. You feel disconnected from your audience and they're not seeing the work," he said.

In the first week of its release, ‘Singham Again’ has minted over Rs 160 crore nett at the box office and Kapoor said the credit of the movie's success should go to everyone who has worked on it.

"I did it for my own selfish reasons of being in a good film and making a reconnect with the audience. I don't think people came to see me, but if they left with me, and they liked the film, I'm happy with that. But the intent was never that, ‘Inn sabke saamne mujhe yaad rakhna'. We are all happy with the credit, I'm sure I can speak on their behalf," he added.