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Exclusive Interview: Farhan Akhtar And Mrunal Thakur On What They've Learnt From Each Other As Actors
The Farhan Akhtar and Mrunal Thakur starrer Toofaan is all set to release on Amazon Prime Video on July 16, 2021. Farhan plays a struggling boxer from Dongri, Mumbai, named Aziz Ali who rises against all odds to pursue his dream sport. Mrunal Thakur plays Farhan's love interest who goes on to become his strongest support system in the movie. Their chemistry in the trailer of Toofaan as well as the soundtrack of the movie has been much appreciated by the fans. In an exclusive chat with Filmibeat in Bangalore, Farhan Akhtar and Mrunal Thakur revealed what they have learnt from each other as actors on the sets of Toofaan and also talked about a happy memory with each other.
Farhan Akhtar revealed, "My biggest memory and what stayed with me most was the time after I met Mrunal (Thakur) was that there is this immense hunger to keep growing and that for me is always amazing to see. Especially when you think about your own career like spending 20 years doing the thing that you love, sometimes you wonder whether you have stagnated. And when you meet people who inspire you, that enthusiasm is contagious, the hunger to know and learn more is so obvious. Sometimes you imbibe that again within you and you remember why you love doing what you do. No matter how many films you do, you will always remain like that and so I had a wonderful time working with her."
Talking about Mrunal's performance in Toofaan, Farhan Akhtar said, "In terms of her performance, she is real, strong, vulnerable and full of love. When I think of her character and performance, she is the strongest character in the film and that also has to come through in your performance. I don't think we could have asked for a better Ananya for this film. Now praise me also (laughs while gesturing to Mrunal Thakur)."
Mrunal Thakur in turn also had the sweetest things to say for the Bhaag Milkha Bhaag actor. She said, "You just saw how amazing he is but also Farhan is one of the most secure actors that I have ever met. He will always make sure that I'm comfortable and he has got an amazing sense of humour. I will be sitting all nervous before a shot and he would then crack a joke that would make us all laugh. That's the beauty about him - that he would just lighten up the entire room. We would not even feel like this was a challenging scene that we were about to perform."
"The second thing is the commitment. He is so dedicated when it comes to the role. There is no shortcut for him like some actors who are always trying to find some shortcut to essay a particular role. People often ask me how do you choose your roles and I honestly just went with the flow but from now onwards, I'm going to make sure that I will come out of my comfort zone and do roles like what Farhan did. Be it Bhaag Milkha Bhaag or this one in Toofaan and I'm going to wait for that film to happen."
Furthermore, praising the Rock On!! actor, Mrunal Thakur said, "I do not watch him on the screen as Farhan, I watch him as Ajju or as Milkha and that's the beauty of Farhan. I wish to steal that quality from him. When the audience would watch me, I don't want them to watch me as Mrunal, I want them to watch me as Ananya or the other characters that I'm performing in the future. I'm also inspired by him when it comes to fitness. After finishing the movie, I realised the satisfaction you feel when you are in the ring. I realised the importance of mixed martial arts or kick-boxing and I'm sure that after watching the film, all the boxers who have left boxing will bounce back in the ring. All the people who are looking forward to performing at the Olympics must see Toofaan because Farhan has played this character so beautifully and I'm proud that I could witness that magic being created on-screen. I don't think I can ever stop praising him!"
Toofaan been helmed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. It also stars Paresh Rawal in a pivotal role. The movie has been bankrolled by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar.
