Akshay Kumar is one of the busiest and fittest actors in Bollywood industry. The actor is also one of the most bankable actors, who have given several blockbuster films in his long film career. The actor has made a name for himself in this highly completive industry.
After doing several films and spending decades in the glamorous industry, the actor has opened up about his struggles in the industry. He talks about how his determination has helped him during his initial days.
Superstar Kumar gave a very candid interview to leading daily Mid-Day. Everyone knows that he is a fitness freak and love following his code. In the interview, the actor revealed a totally new side of himself, which we never knew. It is really inspiring to hear about his struggling days and how he reached his level of stardom. Scroll down to know some of the highlights of the interview:
When asked about his audition of ‘Jo Jeeta Wahi Sikander’ and why it didn’t work out, Akshay said:
“I had given a screen test for the role of Deepak Tijori’s. [Tijori played the young anti-hero in the school-campus rom-com]. They didn’t like it. And, apparently, I was crap, so they removed me.”
Currently, the actor does three to four films a year, but he used to get rejected in most of his auditions during his struggling days. When asked about this, he said:
“Yeah, I had auditioned with BR Chopra, Ravi Chopra, Raj Sippy, Pramod Chakravorty. I didn’t have money to get my own portfolio shot, so I assisted photographer Jay Seth, on the condition that one day, he’d shoot and make my portfolio for me. I worked for him without any pay.”
You may not know that Akshay Kumar is not the real name of the actor; his real name is Rajeev Bhatia. He was actually working as a martial art teacher in a Mahesh Bhatt film Aaj. When he realized that the hero of the film was called Akshay, he started calling himself that.
When asked about the same, the actor said,
“Yes. That is a true story. Kumar Gaurav was the hero in that film. He was called Akshay. And, I don’t know why; it’s not that I thought my name was bad. Rajeev is a very good name. Pata nahi, dimag mein koi chah aa jati hai. And I just wanted to go, and change my name, and I went to the court in Bandra East and did it. I have a full certificate as proof [of my name-change].”
There is a long story about how he got into the movies. Talking about the same, the actor explained:
“So, I woke up one morning to start my workout. At six in the evening that day, I was meant to go to Bangalore for a modelling assignment that I’d got. At 5.10 am, I got a call from the airport. The [modelling] agency guy asked me where I was. I said I was home. And then he blasted me, over how unprofessional I was. He said, “You will never succeed in life, I can guarantee you.” I asked, “What happened?” And then I realised, the flight I had thought was for 6 pm, was actually for 6 am. I was actually in tears telling him, “Yaar, mein bhag ke, motorcycle pe abhi aata hoon [I can just rush in now].” Unfortunately, they didn’t agree. Obviously, they were also right. They had to catch a flight as well. Ussi din, mera card bhi aa gaya chap ke [That’s the day my visiting cards arrived from the printing press].”
He further added,
“I was very low. My father had gone to work. I was talking to my mother, who said, as every mother says in their own language, “Puttar koi baat bahi. Jo honda hai, Rab theek karta hai [Whatever happens, happens for the good].” That line, I’ve heard so many times from my mother. So, I went to Natraj studio that day, where I met [filmmaker] Pramod Chakravorty’s company’s make-up man. He asked me, “Hero banna hai?” I said, “Haan yaar, banna hai [Yes, I want to be a hero]. He said, “Photo hai [You have pictures]?” At that time, we used to travel with such big photographs, in a huge album. Because directors, and producers, would not want to see a small picture. I don’t know what they wanted to see – pores in your skin, or what. But they wanted to see everything closely. So, he took that album inside the office, Pramod Chakravorty saw it. I was called in. Much to my surprise, he gave me my first cheque, signed me up for three films, immediately. Right away. He gave me a cheque of R5000, for the first film, R50,000, for second film, and the third cheque had R1.5 lakh on it. The exact time he gave me those cheques was 6 o’clock in the evening. It would have been a disaster, if I would have gone to Bangalore. Today, I would be a retired model somewhere. So yes, whatever happens is for the good.”
you may be aware of the fact that Akshay Kumar is working towards the self-defense of women. You may be surprised to know that 21,000 girls have graduated from his school. When he was asked about the same, he said,
“Well, there was a recent case as well. A guy tried to molest one of the girls trained from my school. Forget resisting the molestation, she was so powerful that she beat him black and blue. He is in jail now. It’s not about learning martial arts. Women have to understand that they should be able to combat blows. What happens when someone holds a girl’s hands, she freezes. She can’t believe that someone has caught her like this [inappropriately]. She doesn’t scream, move or shriek. That is when a man takes advantage of her. I am trying to teach them how to be more confident in real life, besides being able to get out of an unfortunate situation.”
He further added,
“I teach them that they have to scream. I never have them come to the school in track pants. If people go to work in saree, they should come to learn in a saree. When someone attacks, you won’t say, “Ruko track pant pehen ke aane do [Wait, let me wear my track pants].” They practice in heels, shoes everything. We have all kinds of students -from CEOs, to maids -training, free of cost. They come, enjoy the classes, and win medals. My farewell gift to them is a keychain with a whistle on it. When a girl whistles, the guy withdraws, and gets shocked. It scares him. It’s an Israeli tactic.”
The article was first published in Mid-Day.
