“I am too impulsive in Raajneeti” – Arjun Rampal

Prithvi will belatedly harness his mercurial talent, emerging as a natural choice for the people of his country seeking an honest answer, an affable character weighed down by personal difficulty, love and angst. That's Arjun Rampal for you in a nutshell in Raajneeti. Rampal knows how to grasp those inner demons, right from his Rock On days, we're sure. Thus, he is back on the familiar turf with a vengeance. From the Rock stage to the political stage is quite something. But what remains common is the audience cheering him on, this time as a go-getter politician. With Bollywood's confidence in him restored, he is now carrying a lot of stake on his shoulder. Arjun's rare, instinctive gift for inhabiting a character has earned him a National Award, critics acclaim and audience appreciation. Will Raajneeti be another feather in his cap? This special correspondent asks the lovable and captivating hell-raiser Arjun Rampal.

Growth
I think any film helps you as an actor. In terms of performances, these are very character driven roles and so you really need to dig your teeth into it. Supported by good writing, Raajneeti is a path breaking film with super strong characters. When you have good writing, automatically, your life as an actor becomes far easier. Raajneeti is a great political drama and that's entertainment, isn't it? (Laughs).

Game
Prakash is very well evolved with characters, mannerisms, body language, etc. as a director. Yes, when you have great actors like Nana, Ajay and Manoj, Ranbir included, you know that there is only going to be great work done. Period. I don't look at my co-stars as opponents. But as their quality improves, my own game as an actor improves. It's like a tennis match. More rallies' improves your game.

Lucky
I'm lucky to be getting good work and it is my responsibility to deliver beyond all my performances. I want to take my character beyond what the writer has written. The biggest compliment an actor can get is when the director and the writer cannot imagine any other actor in his or her part.

Learn
I watched a lot of videos of politicians in my old days and in today's time, even the younger politicians. These are educated people who are in our mind space and the young blood is going to make our country prosper. Having said that, I haven't emulated any politician to play my part in Raajneeti because these are characters according to situations and a bit picked from the Mahabharata.

Role
I talk very fast in Raajneeti. I am a bit impulsive too in the film. My role is of this guy called Prithvi who is very passionate about everything. If he loves, he loves with all his heart and if he hates, he hates with all his heart. I've played Arjun in real life, so it seems rather unfair to play Arjun again (laughs). To play Bheem from Mahabharata was a big challenge.

Raajneeti
The experience for an audience through Raajneeti is going to be about sitting and watching what happens behind closed doors of politics. That's going to be a new experience for them. It's not a film that preaches and teaches that this is what we should do for our country. Raajneeti is about power hungry people and what happens to people when they get so obsessed by achieving power - the power of a chair. There are two parties who are contesting and both are good in their own way but the approaches are completely different. Which party you are going to stand by is a big question and I hope they root for my party (laughs).