Eyebrows
were
raised
when
Emraan
Hashmi
consented
to
work
alongside
Ajay
Devgn
in
Once
Upon
A
Time
In
Mumbai.
After
all
here
was
an
actor
with
two
decades
of
working
experience
and
a
screen
persona
which
could
scare
the
biggest
of
the
actors
in
the
business
despite
the
length
of
the
role.
We
saw
that
recently
in
Raajneeti
when
people
couldn't
have
enough
of
Ajay
even
as
Ranbir
Kapoor,
Arjun
Rampal
and
Manoj
Bajpayee
came
up
with
a
bravura
act.
However,
this
was
certainly
not
going
to
be
the
case
in
this
Milan
Luthria
directed
action
drama
affair
which
clearly
had
much
bigger
space
for
the
senior
actor.
No
wonder,
for
Emraan
it
was
no
less
than
a
brave
decision
to
not
just
play
a
parallel
lead
in
OUATIM
but
also
match
his
acting
skills
against
Ajay
and
be
open
to
widespread
scrutiny
on
the
release
of
the
film.
In
a
candid
conversation
with
this
correspondent,
Emraan
Hashmi
reveals
how
he
never
had
any
reservations
to
begin
with
when
it
came
to
Bollywood
and
in
fact
has
hardly
been
playing
safe
ever
since
he
started
off
in
Bollywood
over
half
a
decade
back.
For
someone
who
is
known
for
picking
up
only
solo
subjects,
it
seems
you
made
a
wise
decision
to
work
with
Ajay
Devgn
in
Once
Upon
A
Time
In
Mumbai.
Audience
is
loving
the
scenes
where
the
two
of
you
are
together.
Yes,
I
have
been
hearing
that
as
well.
However,
it's
a
misconception
actually
that
I
have
been
having
any
reservations
about
acting
in
multi
starrers.
If
we
go
back
into
the
past,
I
have
had
the
most
unconventional
launch
to
begin
with.
I
was
a
supporting
actor
in
my
debut
film
Footpath
where
the
cast
was
led
by
Aftab
Shivadasani,
Rahul
Dev
and
Bipasha
Basu.
Now
that
was
some
start
to
my
career
where
I
had
to
carry
off
a
rugged
street
boy
persona.
If
this
wasn't
enough,
I
was
the
villain
in
my
second
film
Murder.
As
you
can
see,
I
have
never
been
playing
safe
after
all.
But
still,
the
fact
cannot
be
changed
that
you
have
primarily
been
doing
only
those
films
where
you
are
either
a
central
character
or
the
only
lead.
20
odd
films
done
between
2003
and
2010
are
a
testimony
to
that.
(Adds
quickly)
Then
how
about
Kalyug?
I
wasn't
the
lead
there;
it
was
Kunal
(Khemu).
Then
even
in
Aksar,
it
was
my
character
that
got
killed
whereas
Dino
lived
on
even
after
committing
a
murder.
Yeh
sab
preconceived
notions
hain
that
I
wish
to
work
only
in
solo
starrers.
Of
course
I
have
had
success
in
films
where
I
am
the
only
lead
and
I
will
continue
to
do
such
films
as
well.
But
I
am
not
saying
an
absolute
'No'
to
multi
starrers.
Well,
Once
Upon
A
Time
In
Mumbai
did
require
quite
some
attention
from
you,
considering
the
fact
that
it's
shooting
was
spread
over
quite
a
few
months.
While
as
an
actor,
the
film
certainly
seems
to
have
paid
off
for
you,
didn't
you
ever
wonder
during
the
making
that
in
the
same
time
period,
you
could
have
possibly
wrapped
up
two,
if
not
three
films?
Was
there
ever
a
situation
where
you
were
truly
frustrated?
It's
never
the
time
that
one
worries
about;
it's
the
intent
that
one
has
to
be
cognizant
about.
A
film
may
take
six
months
to
finish
or
perhaps
one
year
but
as
long
as
the
intent
is
right,
the
direction
clear
and
the
goal
achieved,
it's
all
okay.
A
film
like
this
takes
time
and
today
when
audience
and
observers
say
that
OUATIM
actually
makes
them
relive
the
era
gone
by,
it
is
gratifying
since
the
hard
work
has
paid
off.
We
wanted
to
make
a
winner
film
and
we
have
done
that
in
OUATIM.
The
film's
narrative
and
dialogues
have
garnered
some
real
all
around
appreciation...
We
knew
that
there
was
a
certain
time
zone
that
had
to
be
depicted
so
we
had
to
be
extra
careful
and
worked
really
hard
to
make
that
happen.
Also,
the
film
had
to
be
fast
in
pace.
Moreover,
this
had
to
be
complimented
with
some
great
content
failing
which,
the
entire
film
would
have
fell
heads
down.
We
couldn't
be
just
stylish
or
get
preachy.
We
had
to
be
true
to
the
characters
that
we
were
playing
and
set
the
right
layout
and
tone.
We
had
to
work
on
putting
together
an
entertainer.
Period.
Milan
Luthria
says
that
the
inspiration
for
the
film's
terrific
background
score
was
Don.
Did
he
tell
you
about
any
other
inspirations
when
it
came
to
the
overall
narrative
and
story
telling
approach?
(Laughs)
No,
there
is
no
particular
narrative
style
or
reference
point
that
we
have
taken
in
the
film.
The
film
has
lived
its
own
life.
In
any
case,
I
don't
watch
too
many
Hindi
films
so
I
am
not
the
best
person
to
compare
OUATIM
with
any
reference
points.
Also,
what
we
were
quite
clear
about
OUATIM
was
that
we
had
to
go
out
there
and
try
something
unique
and
different
rather
than
taking
from
someone
or
somewhere.
We
had
to
create
a
benchmark.
We
didn't
have
to
look
at
any
reference
point;
we
rather
had
to
become
one!
Story first published: Tuesday, August 3, 2010, 16:29 [IST]