'We
Had
The
Choice
To
Go
With
Some
Other
Actress
For
'Munna
Badnaam'
Q.
When
you
started
off
with
'Dabangg',
was
there
ever
a
thought
that
you
could
turn
this
into
a
franchise?
A.
The
last
scene
of
'Dabangg'
which
we
shot,
hinted
that
we
might
come
up
with
a
next
one.
Arbaaz
Khan
at
that
point
of
time,
asked
if
we
were
looking
a
little
pompous
about
that
film
and
even
planning
a
sequel.
I
told
him
if
it
works
then
well
and
good
and
if
not,
there's
nothing
we
could
do.
But,
everyone
liked
the
film
so,
we
did
'Dabangg
2'
which
was
also
quite
appreciated.
Q.
How
did
you
zero
in
on
Warina
Hussain
for
'Munna
Badnaam'?
A.
We
cast
her
for
the
song
because
she
did
'LoveYatri'
with
Aayush
(Sharma).
After
that,
we
had
the
choice
to
go
with
some
other
actress.
But
since,
we
had
worked
with
her
and
she
was
good
in
that
film,
we
thought
she
will
do
wonders
with
the
song.
Q.
How
challenging
is
it
to
take
a
franchise
forward?
A.
It's
very
difficult.
But
'Dabangg'
has
fallen
in
place.
Even
the
fourth
one
has
fallen
in
place.
This
happens
only
for
films
like
'Rocky'
series.
'I
Couldn't
Relate
To
Chulbul
From
His
Younger
Days'
Q.
Along
with
producing
'Dabangg
3',
you
have
also
written
the
film...
A.
I
came
up
with
the
thought
and
Arbaaz
and
me
just
kept
on
improvising
on
it.
Then,
we
decided
to
explore
Chulbul's
past
and
that's
how
the
prequel
was
built
up.
The
thought
was
to
begin
the
film
with
an
idea
and
then,
go
back
to
how
my
character
became
Chulbul
Panday
and
then,
his
past
meets
his
present
and
how
Chulbul
has
to
deal
with
that.
Q.
Since
'Dabangg
3' is
a
prequel,
could
you
relate
to
some
of
the
characteristics
of
Chulbul
Panday
with
how
you
were
in
your
younger
days?
A.
'Dabangg
3'
is
a
semi-prequel
(laughs).
I
couldn't
relate
to
him
at
all.
Chulbul
was
a
simple
boy.
Q.
Your
throwback
picture
with
Saiee
Manjrekar
went
viral
on
the
internet.
From
meeting
her
as
a
kid
to
now,
she
being
your
heroine
in
the
film,
do
you
think
she
has
done
justice
to
the
role?
A.
She
has
done
a
wonderful
job.
I
will
be
shocked
if
this
industry
doesn't
get
a
big
star
after
'Dabangg
3'.
'Heroism
Doesn't
Mean
Romancing
Girls'
Q.
You
are
considered
to
be
a
pro
when
it
comes
to
high-octane
action
movies,
which
end
up
as
blockbusters.
But
you
still
don't
let
that
get
to
your
head.
After
so
many
years
of
success
and
achieving
so
much,
how
do
you
ensure
that
success
doesn't
go
to
your
head
because
you
put
in
the
same
effort
in
every
movie?
A.
When
I
used
to
watch
films,
I
used
to
come
out
of
theatre
in
awe
of
the
hero
and
think
about
becoming
one.
That's
the
same
funda
which
I
am
using
now.
I
don't
think
anything
works
better
than
heroism.
Heroism
doesn't
mean
romancing
girls.
It
means
doing
something
for
someone
whether
small
or
big,
against
all
odds
and
you
mean
that
happen.
So
when
we
talk
about
action,
it
makes
no
sense
till
the
time
you
don't
have
the
emotion
backing
it.
Q.
Who
coined
the
name
'Chulbul
Pandey' for
your
character
in
the
film?
A. Actually,
Arbaaz
bought
'Dabangg'
to
me.
Originally,
it
was
a
very
dark
film,
small
film
to
be
made
under
Rs
2
crore.
At
that
point
of
time,
it
was
supposed
to
star
Randeep
Hooda
and
Arbaaz.
So
Arbaaz
said
he
has
been
approached
for
this
and
it's
a
good
one,
so
just
hear
it.
Then
six-eight
months
passed
before
I
finally
heard
it.
I
think
UTV
was
supposed
to
do
it.
I
liked
the
feel
of
the
film
but
Chulbul
was
out
and
out
negative.
That
film
didn't
have
any
action,
certainly
not
at
this
scale.
There
were
no
songs
and
we
never
get
to
know
who
killed
the
mother.
We
started
working
on
it
and
Abhinav
(Kashyap,
director)
agreed
to
all
those
changes.
He
did
a
very
good
job
with
the
first
one.
We
also
asked
him
to
do
the
second
one
but
for
whatever
reasons
he
said
he
didn't
want
to
do
it,
that
we
didn't
let
him
make
his
film."
Q.
Would
you
ever
consider
playing
an
antagonist
in
a
film?
A.
(pauses)
It
depends.
Q.
Your
film
'Maine
Pyaar
Kiya'
completes
30
years
on
December
29.
What's
the
feeling
like?
A.
It
feels
like
the
day
before
yesterday,
I
was
looking
for
work
and
signed
'Maine
Pyaar
Kiya'.
It
released
yesterday
and
today,
I
am
at
this
position
here.
So,
these
30
years
of
Maine
Pyaar
Kiya
goes
from
day
before
yesterday,
yesterday
and
today.
That's
how
quick
this
journey
has
been.
'Preity
Zinta
Is
Superb
And
Has
Good
Energy'
Q.
What
kind
of
freshness
has
Prabhu
Deva
brought
to
this
film?
A.
He
has
a
lot
of
contribution
in
the
film.
He
brought
in
a
different
kind
of
heroism
from
the
South.
He
understands
the
genre
of
heroism
and
how
one
should
to
bring
in
romance,
humour,
emotions.
He
makes
you
dance
in
the
songs
too.
Q.
Recently
in
an
interview,
you
spoke
about
a
crossover
between
Chulbul,
Radhe
and
Devil...
A.
Aise
hi
maine
bola
diya.
Don't
take
me
seriously
on
these
things.
That
was
a
thought
we
had.
Q.
On
that
thought,
since
we
have
so
many
cop
dramas
happening,
will
there
be
scope
for
all
cops
coming
together,
considering
the
audience
easily
accepts
senior
actors
like
you,
Ajay
Devgn
and
others
in
the
khaki
uniform?
A.
It
took
us
time
as
well
to
fit
into
this
uniform.
I
played
a
cop
for
the
first
time
in
'Patthar
Ke
Phool'.
That
film
did
pretty
okay.
Next
one
was
'Auzaar'.
The
main
journey
started
from
'Veergati'.
Before
that,
my
character
did
romance,
action,
comedy
and
danced
as
well.
'Veergati'
brought
in
some
heroism
and
respect.
Though
the
film
flopped
at
the
box
office,
it
was
liked
by
the
audience.
Q.
What
made
you
think
Saiee
Manjrekar
was
the
perfect
choice
for
'Dabangg
3'?
A.
We
wrote
the
character
and
we
had
seen
her.
So,
we
knew
she
was
the
girl
for
the
film.
It
was
just
an
instinct.
Like
how,
we
had
it
with
Sona
(Sonakshi
Sinha).
The
way
she
was
in
the
film,
before
we
signed
her,
she
looked
nothing
like
that.
But,
there
was
a
faith
and
intuition
on
in
her
that
she
would
be
Rajjo.
Q.
There
were
reports
about
Preity
Zinta's
cameo
in
'Dabangg
3'
after
she
posted
a
picture
in
uniform
with
your
character
Chulbul
Pandey
on
social
media...
A.
Preity
Zinta
wanted
to
do
something
for
Halloween.
She
wanted
to
dress
up
as
a
cop.
I
was
shooting
some
patchwork
on
the
last
day
of
'Dabangg
3'
when
suddenly,
I
saw
her
in
a
cop
uniform.
I
went
back
and
changed
into
Chulbul's
outfit
and
clicked
pictures
with
her.
I
love
her
and
I
do
these
things.
She
is
superb
and
has
good
energy.