There’s no FOMO. Fear of missing out. Unlike celebrities obsessed with their mobile phones, he’s not plugged into it while chatting with me. Fawad Afzal Khan is a unique beast. Far from the madding world of social media and apps. He knows he’s the ‘it’ boy. He has the acting chops and all the ingredients that go into processing a pan Asian sweetheart. His rise to being Pakistani’s hottest telestar has been chronicled in everything from Wikipedia to the foreign press. That serials like Zindagi Gulzar Hai and Humsafar slalomed him into an A-list star has been tabloidised too.
Music star, TV actor and now a major movie star, he’s getting everyone’s knickers into a knot. The politics of the countries notwithstanding, Fawad Khan is a major player at the movies. But but but! He’s happily married and he assures us that there’s no scope for messing around. He has this ‘unf***withable’ clause. Pardon the French. No homilies, no goody-two-shoes act, I can sense someone trying to come to grips with the upside and the downside of stardom. For sure he knows he’s eye candy but he won’t be any critic’s favourite whipping boy! Why? Because he can act. When he has a meltdown in the Pakistani TV show Humsafar, it’s for real. You can see the eddies and the currents churning behind those aquiline features! FK is to the manner born. And we’re absolutely okay with that. We suspect the same seamlessness will be on display in Shakun Batra’s Kapoor & Sons! A role rejected by every top liner. We suspect all of them are going to kick themselves for turning it down. On the cusp of his next, we pin down the star in his hotel room for quick parlay:
Let’s talk about Kapoor & Sons. How’s the experience been like working with Karan Johar?
It was a great experience yaar. They are lovely people, like extended family… the whole Dharma team. My high in life is to meet new people. I was lucky during Khoobsurat as well. I had a blast. I was well taken care of. Hospitality and care comes before everything else. Itni achchi camaraderie ban gayi that I just did not feel time go by. And now I’m missing those times. Especially when I was watching the trailers. I called them up to tell them so.
Who from B-town’s Kapoor family is your favourite?
They are all in a league of their own. I’ve been a fan. I’ve watched Hindi films but not too many. Reason being my father was posted at different places throughout his career. We studied in American schools. We heard more of Western music. At home ghazals of Jagjit and Chitra Singh would be heard. For me it was too much at the age of 10. We used to be like, ‘Huh! Yeh kya ho raha hai!’ Yes, we did watch Hindi films on VHS like Mr India, Mr Natwarlal, Satte Pe Satta and even Chandni. I thought Woh Saat Din was probably the most mature film I had seen. Till date, the Kapoor legacy is being carried forward. Ranbir Kapoor is amazing. What a performer! What intensity!
Did you have any preconceived notions when you came here as an actor?
Well, one preconceived notion was that dance would be required of me. That’s something I was terrified of. Having said that, I’d like to attempt it someday. Just the other day I told my manager that I wanted to learn tap dancing. It’s a great exercise, it teaches you beat coordination. Otherwise, I’m sure about what I can give.
What can you give?
As an actor I am willing to get besharam. That’s not being afraid of trying new things. You should be able to make fun of yourself. Getting into the skin of the character liberates you. If you try to look polished and smart all the time then you will act that way. But when you attempt a new guise, a new character, then you become that person. You can always blame it on the character you played if you fear being judged.
Does your iconic popularity come from your films or TV shows?
It was more owing to my television serials. It instilled confidence in me. My introduction to the audience has been through the television.
But your kind of talent doesn’t come unless you’re incredibly gifted...
Ha ha ha! I’m incredibly gifted. I believe I’ve a good eye for observation. And it’s not that I’ve not done terrible work. I’ve done some terrible work. I hate it. Some of my performances are cringe worthy but I can’t name them. (Chuckles) Why should I kill this aura that I’ve created about myself? But when I watch them, I know that the next time I’m not gonna do that. Also I realised that people do watch television. And you can make a difference there. When I began doing TV, I believed that a television actor is nothing because nobody watches TV. I thought it was not cool to be a TV actor. It was wrong, because when I got into it, I realised it was the perfect learning ground.
It’s said that Pakistani serials are better than Pakistani films?
Television, in Pakistan, took over at a time when movies were on a decline and were put on the backburner post the ’80s. Only regional films in Punjabi were being made then. The culture of families going to the cinema halls declined. But few directors kept making films, like Syed Noor made Chudiyaan, which grossed around 30 crores, an unheard of figure then. By 2000, films had just stopped being made. Then came Khuda Kay Liye (2007), which was considered to be the revival of Pakistani cinema. But two years after that there was no film. Then came Bol. So it’s unfair to say that television was better than films. But now cinema there is being rebooted. I’ve signed a few films, which I’m looking forward to. First is a biopic on the life of musician Alamgir. It’s a touching story that spans across three decades. Prosthetics will be used to show the aging character. The other one is a period action film, a magnum opus in Punjabi, which is a remake of a classic from the ’70s called Maula Jatt. But we have revamped the story and conceptualised it more on the lines of The Game Of Thrones.
And are you listening to any interesting scripts here? What about the Sahir Ludhianvi biopic?
There was talk. I’ve heard the subject. I’ve had the chance of meeting the producer and the director. But nothing has been finalised. I prefer to remain tight-lipped about things unless something concrete happens because then you appear to be dropping names. That I was offered this project but I didn’t do it.
You seem to be enjoying a long-distance relationship with Mumbai.
Being here physically has its own advantages. You get to meet the right people at the right time. You are in the thick of things. But it’s been working fine for me according to my convenience. I’m a lazy bum. Basically, I don’t like to work. I hate getting up and taking a shower to go to work. Often I take a shower and then go back to sleep. When I’m at work, it takes me an hour to get into it. But once I’m into it, I don’t like getting out. I’m a child like that. (Laughs) If there was a way that you could lie in bed and make money, I’d opt for it. Okay, that came out wrong. This long distance thing is working for me so far. It gives me my space.
Is shifting to India a possibility?
It’s not possible because my whole setup, my whole family is there. And I don’t know how easy it is right now till the official parameters are not in place. My son, Ayaan, is also attending school there. I don’t work in a foreign office where my family can live with me and my son can attend school here. But whenever I leave Mumbai, I feel ek aur din reh leta hoon. I have fun when I come here.
Adnan Sami has finally got an Indian citizenship. What’s your take on it?
If an Indian would ever want to become a Pakistani, or if a Pakistani an Indian or even a Nigerian, it’s fine. You say you’re living in a global village. Why do you say that if you don’t believe in the culture? I have no qualms about such things though you cannot impress your opinion upon other people.
Showbiz has seen many breakups recently. Does being an actor make it difficult to maintain a relationship?
(Laughs) What are you trying to hint at? Are you trying to ask whether my marriage is falling apart? The reason my wife Sadaf is so secure is that she knows that a person like me will never be able to find another partner in life. Possibility of affairs? No one would like to have an affair with me. I’m just good for conversation. That’s all I’m good for. Jokes apart, honestly, even if you were a banker or a lawyer such insecurities exist for any couple around the world. That can happen at any stage and can happen as harmlessly as when you attenda dinner party and someone talks to you. Main bada posessive hoon. When I see attention being given I’m happy. But when I see extra attention being given, I don’t like it. I’m possessive that way and I expect her to be that way as well. But it’s not happened to an extent that it’s interfered with our relationship. Haan ladte hain. But that happens in any relationship. There are several excuses to fight. But we’ve been going strong. We’ve gone through that patch, after which life cannot be restarted again. We’re happy. We’re both lazy to restart things now. So that issue never comes up. It’s a chilled out dynamic between us.
Are you dead sure about the future?
Yes, you cannot foresee what is going to happen in the future but if something were to happen it would have immediate consequences. But sitting there and brooding over it? She wouldn’t do that. We have a term which we use for each other. Like she’ll always tell me, ‘just remember that you’re ‘unf***withable’. That also goes the other way around where I say ‘you’re ‘unf***withable’ too’.
Coming to your family, how has it taken to your stardom? Have things changed?
Nahin I’m still the sloth and slob that I was. My family lives in the same city. I touch home for four-five days so I drop in and out. I’ve not let things change. But yes your habits change when you’re getting a good pay and you are living a good life. We try to keep it as real as possible. So that if things change tomorrow we still feel the same.
When you’re with your son do you see a lot of your father in yourself?
No my dynamic is completely different with my son. My father is a strict person. Though that does not affect his love for me in any way. He cared in his own special way. We had this traditional dictum that when Abu is at home everyone should remain khamosh, maskhara nahin banna (no mischief). The words he used to reprimand us were old world phrases like ‘ullu ki dum faafta’, ‘ek toh karela upar se neem chadha’. But when I went to college, I turned into a rebel. There was angst and I used to fight often.
Did the Western music you listened to those days also make you a rebel?
Yeah I guess. That supercharges you. You’re like ‘yeah man I want to change the world’. ‘Oh man I wanna be cool’. Even today I act things out in front of the mirror in the bathroom. But yes, my dynamic with my son is different. I believe we are equals mentally. Somewhere in my head, I’m like an eight-year-old. We play video games; we watch cartoons and do all kinds of stuff together. That kind of things I did not have with my father. I believe parents should enjoy this kind of relationship with their kids. You need to be friends with them. Not that I’m saying that my parents weren’t caring. But when you are closer to your children, they find it easier to communicate and let you into their lives. They trust you and if they’re in trouble they can confide in you. Similarly, you can confide in them. That’s what a family is ultimately about.
Does your diabetes come in the way of your travel and your work? How do you cope?
The cure is on the way. Hopefully, you’ll never have to see a glucometer again you’ll never have to see insulin or an injection again. I have type 1, which is said to be incurable. type 2 is also incurable but you can control it with lifestyle changes. In type 2 you may need insulin eventually. But in type 1, you’re insulin dependent from day one. Though type 1 is said to be genetic, earlier it was believed to occur because of an autoimmune disorder that can come on because of a viral infection. In my case, I used to smoke in school. We’d hide behind the swimming pool to smoke. There used to be pipes there with raw and unfinished concrete on it. We’d swim, come out, take a puff and go back again. Once, when I was standing against these concrete pipes, I got scratches and cuts. But I jumped back into the swimming pool. The water had not been treated that day. I developed a terrible infection. I lost 10 kilos. That’s when I realised that I was diabetic. Now, I have managed to procure a wireless pump. When you sit down to eat and enter what you will be eating into it, it calculates the number of calories and the number of units of insulin you’ll require for that. You press the button and it automatically starts delivering the required amount of insulin to the body. Science is truly amazing!
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