Actor Arjun Kapoor got an opportunity to play a double-role in his only second film and the veritable newcomer says it is a challenge that any actor would love to take in his career.
The 27-year-old entered filmdom as a ruffian in "Ishaqzaade" and in his second venture "Aurangzeb" he ended up playing a double-role.
"It is a challenge that every actor dreams of doing in his career. I got it so soon and I jumped at it. I guess only Hrithik had done this in his first film ('Kaho Naa...Pyaar Hai'). I got it in my second. For me, the process was interesting to find the two characters," Arjun told IANS.
Directed by Atul Sabharwal, the film opened to good reviews. Besides Arjun, it stars Prithviraj Sukumaran, Rishi Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Amrita Singh and Sasheh Aagha.
Arjun stepped in to play Ajay and Vishal who are completely opposite characters.
If Ajay was the bad boy of Gurgaon who is "violent, rude and misbehaves with women", Vishal, in contrast, is the small town boy "suddenly dragged into the world of cops and underworld".
More From This Section
The main challenge was to portray the two characters with conviction, said Arjun.
"On the sets, while playing Vishal, I used to remember Ajay, so that I don't play it like Ajay and vice versa," he added.
He never expected his second film to be like this.
"I was offered 'Aurangzeb' before 'Ishaqzaade' released. I was surprised that they thought I was capable enough to pull a double-role. Also, when I read the script, I never expected Yash Raj Films to do this kind of film. You would probably expect me and Yash Raj to do my next film in a slightly more younger, fresher kind of zone. So this is what excited me that it was inverse to what every had in mind for me," he said.
The actor said the film reminded him of classics like "Deewaar" and "Trishul".
"I have grown up watching these gritty family dramas with 'dialoguebaazi'. the old Yash Raj dramas like 'Trishul' and 'Deewaar' kind of films. That was what excited me. I got to work with such brilliant actors and work with a good director," he said.