Ayushmann Khurrana Was Always Intrigued By Caste Divide In India
Actor Ayushmann Khurrana believes his golden run at the box office, including back-to-back hits Andhadhun and Badhaai Ho, instilled the confidence in him to take up a hard-hitting project like Article
News
oi-Swikriti Srivastava
By Pti
Actor
Ayushmann
Khurrana
believes
his
golden
run
at
the
box
office,
including
back-to-back
hits
Andhadhun
and
Badhaai
Ho,
instilled
the
confidence
in
him
to
take
up
a
hard-hitting
project
like
Article
15.
The
film,
directed
by
Anubhav
Sinha
of
Mulk
fame,
touches
upon
the
sensitive
topic
of
casteism.
Khurrana
said
he
always
wanted
to
be
a
part
of
gritty
and
socially-relevant
films
like
Article
15.
"Last
two
years
were
very
fortunate
for
me
as
my
films
clocked
great
numbers
at
the
box
office
and
it
only
gave
courage
to
me
to
do
a
film
like
'Article
15'.
It
was
a
part
of
my
bucket
list
to
do
a
film
like
this
because
I
always
wanted
to
do
something
on
a
social
issue," he
told
PTI
in
an
interview.
The
film
offers
a
realistic
take
on
Article
15
of
the
Indian
Constitution,
which
prohibits
discrimination
on
grounds
of
religion,
race,
caste,
sex
or
place
of
birth.
Khurrana
believes
the
presence
of
mainstream
actors
like
him
in
such
films
helps
the
cause
as
it
will
help
them
connect
with
a
wider
audience.
"If
you
have
a
mainstream
actor
attached
to
a
subject
like
this,
it
reaches
out
to
a
wider
audience.
We
want
to
reach
out
to
people
who
believe
in
caste
discrimination
and
if
we
are
able
to
change
the
mindset
of
one
person
that
will
be
the
true
victory
for
us,"
he
said.
The
actor
was
set
to
collaborate
with
Sinha
for
a
romantic
film
but
destiny
brought
them
together
for
Article
15.
Khurrana
said
he
became
a
fan
of
the
director
after
watching
his
2018
courtroom
drama
"Mulk".
"I
became
a
fanboy
of
Anubhav
Sinha,
I
feel
he
discovered
his
true
voice
as
a
director
after
'Mulk'.
When
I
met
him
he
had
offered
me
a
rom-com
but
I
told
him
I
am
looking
for
a
hard-hitting
subject,
something
like
'Mulk'.
He
narrated
a
couple
of
concepts
to
me
and
'Article
15' was
one
of
them.
Later
he
worked
on
the
draft,
which
we
both
loved
and
we
happened
to
be
on
the
same
page."
While
Article
15
may
be
Khurrana's
first
film
based
around
a
social
issue,
the
actor
has
been
a
part
socially-relevant
stories
during
his
theatre
days.
"We
have
made
street
plays
on
social
issues
and
caste
discrimination
was
one
of
them.
Apart
from
that,
I
have
been
supporting
an
NGO
in
Delhi.
I
did
all
this
before
'Article
15'
came
into
the
picture.
"As
a
person,
I
was
always
intrigued
by
the
caste
divide
in
the
country.
In
rural
areas
the
caste
divide
is
very
rampant,
there
are
honour
killings
because
of
inter-caste
alliances.
We
have
depicted
the
situation
as
real
as
it
could
be
in
our
film."
The
actor
lamented
the
huge
class
divide
prevalent
in
every
part
of
the
society.
"We
have
separate
utensils
for
our
domestic
help,
we
do
not
share
a
meal
with
them
or
any
of
our
staff.
It
is
all
deep
rooted.
It
will
take
time
to
get
rid
of
all
this.
We
need
to
look
within
and
then
the
conversation
will
be
started."
Khurrana
plays
a
police
officer
investigating
the
rape
and
murder
of
a
woman,
who
belongs
to
a
minority
class,
in
rural
Uttar
Pradesh.
The
actor
said
he
was
confident
he
would
be
able
to
pull
off
a
tough
role
like
this.
"When
I
was
doing
theatre
in
Chandigarh,
I
always
played
negative
and
aggressive
characters,
something
that
nobody
could
imagine
me
in.
I
did
imagine
myself
to
play
a
cop
but
maybe
people
did
not.
Anubhav
Sinha
sir
also
never
expected
me
in
the
role
of
a
tough
cop.
And
that
was
the
challenge.
More
than
the
character,
it
was
the
subject
that
intrigued
me."
To
prepare
for
the
role,
Khurrana
said
he
read
author
Om
Prakash
Valmiki's
book
Joothan,
in
which
the
author
describes
his
life
as
a
Dalit.
"I
read
the
book
called
'Joothan',
it
is
about
the
kind
of
prejudices
he
faced
in
his
life.
It
made
me
really
depressed
that
I
could
not
sleep
while
shooting
for
this
film.
But
it
did
help
me
build
the
character.
"Also,
I
met
real-life
cops
including
senior
IPS
officers
in
Delhi
and
some
cops
in
UP,
I
observed
the
way
the
proceedings
go
on
at
a
police
station."
Khurrana
said
he
watched
the
documentary,
India
Untouched:
Stories
of
a
People
Apart,
which
he
says,
was
an
eye-opener
for
him.
Responding
to
reports
some
Brahmins
in
UP
are
upset
over
the
negative
portrayal
of
the
community
in
the
film,
Khurrana
said
such
accusations
against
the
film
were
untrue.
"They
have
to
realise
that
what
they
are
doing
is
redundant
and
a
waste
of
time
and
energy,
they
need
to
see
the
film
and
then
realise
what
is
right
and
wrong.
And
in
fact,
'Article
15'
has
already
been
certified
by
the
CBFC,
which
is
known
to
be
strict
with
sensitive
content," he
added.
Also
starring
Sayani
Gupta,
Kumud
Mishra,
Manoj
Pahwa
and
Mohammed
Zeeshan
Ayyub,
Article
15
is
scheduled
to
be
released
on
June
28.