In
Raajneeti
Arjun
Rampal
is
cast
as
Ranbir
Kapoor"s
zany
flamboyant
elder
brother.
The
brotherly
camaraderie
spilt
over
from
the
screen,
and
the
two
guys
were
often
seen
indulging
in
brotherly
activities
on
location
in
Bhopal
including
playing
pranks
on
Katrina
Kaif,
though
on
screen
they
were
required
to
be
emotionally
and
geographically
distanced
from
one
another.
Chortles
Arjun,
“I
don"t
play
the
conventional
Bade
Bhaiyya.
It"s
the
toughest
role
of
my
career.
I
had
to
be
larger-than-life
but
not
over-the-top.
This
man
I
play
is
whimsical,
flamboyant
and
audacious.
He
can
do
anything.
His
kid-brother
has
gone
abroad
to
study.
My
character
has
stayed
back
in
India
to
create
his
own
unpredictable
world.
He"s
in
own
space,
though
not
spaced
out." Arjun
was
guided
by
his
director
Prakash
Jha
in
interpreting
the
character.
“Rock
On,
which
took
my
career
to
another
level
and
got
me
a
National
award,
was
a
dream
role.
I
got
to
play
a
rock
star!
This
man
in
Raajneeti
is
completely
alien
to
me.
He"s
a
man
who
does
the
unthinkable.
Do
I
expect
another
National
award?
No
performance
can
be
tailored
for
recognition."
Arjun
will
also
be
doing
unthinkable
things
in
Anubhav
Sinha"s
Ra.1,
where
he
plays
the
arch-villain,
the
main
antagonist
opposite
Shahrukh
Khan,
though
he
isn"t
allowed
to
talk
about
it.
But
before
that
there"s
Housefull
which
Arjun
says
was
a
laugh
riot.
“But
it
also
has
very
emotional
moments.
As
a
director
Sajid
Khan
is
so
wonderfully
clued
in
to
what
his
actors
can
do.
I
worked
with
Farah
and
now
her
brother
Sajid.
Both
were
fun."
Such
was
the
joy
of
working
with
Akshay
Kumar,
Riteish
Deshmukh,
Deepika
Padukone,
Lara
Dutt
,
Jiah
Khan
and
the
whole
cast
that
Arjun
has
forgotten
he
injured
his
back
during
the
shooting
of
Housefull.“
It
was
yoga
and
physio-therapy
that
helped
heal
my
back
completely,“
says
Arjun
Rampal.
“I
was
working
out
at
the
gym
when
I
suffered
a
massive
slipped
disc.
I
was
required
to
lose
considerable
weight
so
as
to
not
burden
my
back."
On
a
more
cheerful
note,
Arjun
has
lately
been
shooting
with
Kajol
and
Kareena
Kapoor
for
Karan
Johar"s
adaptation
of
Stepmom.
He
says
he
enjoyed
being
sandwiched
between
two
women
who
light
up
the
screen.
"While
Kajol
has
always
been
my
favourite
actress
Kareena
is
more
a
buddy.
Kareena
and
I
started
our
careers
almost
together,
so
we
both
bond
as
colleagues
friends
and
fans
of
Kajol."
In
Stepmom,
Arjun
stars
as
Kajol"s
husband
and
Kareena"s
lover.
“It"s
wonderful
to
have
two
such
gorgeous
actresses
as
my
co-stars.
But
honestly,
today
I"m
confident
enough
to
create
my
own
space
in
a
film."