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On a late-winter afternoon in Delhi, Shahid Kapoor and Pooja Hegde were to meet the press as part of the promotions of Deva. The two walked in fashionably late, a few hours give or take, and sat down for an interview with News Agency.
In Deva, Shahid Kapoor plays a tough cop while Pooja Hegde is a journalist. The trailer was action-packed and reminded Shahid's fans of his "Angry Young Man" avatar.
We talk about that image, his reasons behind choosing Deva, and the comparisons between Deva and his 2019 blockbuster, Kabir Singh.
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'Face Toh Wahi Hai'
Shahid Kapoor has portrayed the role of a man dealing with anger issues on screen time and again. In the trailer of Deva, Shahid Kapoor's colleagues call him a "mafia" in police uniform. In Deva, when Shahid Kapoor springs into action mode, mercy leaves the room. Or so the trailer would have you believe.
When we ask Shahid Kapoor how Deva is different from Kabir Singh, he smiles, "You'll come to know about this when Deva releases in theatres on January 31. Once you see the film, we can talk about it. Rest assured, it's a very original and different character. I have tried to do it the way I haven't done in the past."
On a lighter note, he adds, "Face toh wahi hai, thoda toh similarity hoga (The face is the same, so there might be similarities)."
Over the years, Shahid Kapoor has built this Angry Young Man image we're talking about. Starting with Kaminey (2009) to Bloody Daddy (2023) - this in itself is a Shahid Kapoor genre.
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How Shahid Chooses His Complex Characters
When we ask if the actor is in his "Angry Young Man" era, he tells News Agency, "Well, I have been doing this for a while now. I have been doing this since Kaminey (2009). I have done Haider (2014). Then I did Udta Punjab (2016). I think, I have been sporadically doing these kind of films."
"The kind of work I have done so far and has been liked the most also has a certain quotient of intensity and complexity in it. I think, people connect and resonate with my work. My only criterion is it shouldn't be too experimental because I have done that in the past. I want to reach a wider audience," Shahid Kapoor continues.
"So, in any story, where I feel there's a relatability and the character has complexity, I just jump at it. So, Deva will be a film in that category only," Shahid Kapoor sums up.
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'Singham Again Did Well'
Last year, an action film like Rohit Shetty's Singham Again, with a star-studded cast, failed to make a mark at the box office. When we ask Shahid Kapoor what made him choose Deva despite Hindi action films' failure at the box office, he asserts that this genre is actually "doing well".
"The only genre that seems to be working right now is action. I don't think it's fair to say Singham Again didn't do well. It did pretty well. I also feel good films do well. And films, which don't live up to audience's expectations, don't do well. But it's not right to say, a genre is not doing well," says Shahid.
We agree to disagree.
"My decision of doing Deva happened one and a half years ago. So, it has nothing to do with the films released in the last six months," explains Shahid Kapoor.
The film is up for release in theatres tomorrow.
Speaking of Deva, director Rosshan Andrrews is making his Hindi debut with the film. He majorly works in Malayalam cinema.
Kubbra Sait, Pravesh Rana, Pavail Gulati also play key roles in the film.