Bollywood star Ayushmann Khurrana delivered a landmark performance of his career in the unanimously lauded Dum Laga Ke Haisha (DLKH) which made a statement about the need for body positivity and told society to not colour people with stereotypes which become a hindrance for love to grow. On the 7th anniversary of the film, the poster boy of content cinema in India today, speaks about how DLKH taught him the biggest lesson of his career.
Ayushmann says, "My journey in cinema has been filled with learnings and have been lucky enough to chance upon great mentors and incredible scripts. When I debuted with Vicky Donor, I was lucky to have found someone like Shoojit Sircar who guided me and shaped me as a performer and a hero. I became an overnight star and trust me, no one can prepare you for it! You do feel slightly lost when such an overwhelming moment arrives. I have to admit that I didn’t know what hit me. I didn’t know which films to choose and which ones to avoid. I didn’t have a direction on how to handle my career."
Ayushmann saw a lean patch after the stupendous success of Vicky Donor but he course-corrected himself with Dum Laga Ke Haisha. Post the film’s massive impact, Ayushmann has never looked back and has consistently backed blockbuster social entertainers, earning him the prestigious tag of being one of the Most Influential People in the World by TIME Magazine.
Ayushmann says, “I made mistakes along the way. I told myself to pivot to focussing on doing what I came to the industry for - find compelling stories and be a part of the best content films being made by the most maverick directors. This is when Dum Laga Ke Haisha happened to me and I will be forever grateful to this film because it taught me the biggest lesson of my career - it told me to choose content first!”
He adds, "The incredible reaction to Dum Laga Ke Haisha showed me that my path in the industry was to pick the best scripts, tell the most disruptive, engaging, and entertaining stories and that success will follow! I haven’t second-guessed myself ever since. I know that my destiny in cinema is to dish out films that audiences have no reference point of. I have single-mindedly tried to do just that."
Ayushmann will be seen next in films like Anubhav Sinha’s Anek, Doctor G and Aanand L. Rai produced Action Hero.
