EXCLUSIVE: Arjun Kapoor & Saif Ali Khan on battling career lows: Everyone asked why I was signed for the films

The Bollywood film industry is a platform where millions of individuals from all around the world can display their talent. However, a person’s career in any entertainment industry is often very unstable, as only a few individuals who strive towards a specific objective manage to effectively break records and establish their position in the hearts of the people. Bollywood stars Arjun Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan have both gone through similar stages in their careers. Arjun Kapoor has starred in several films that were critically acclaimed yet they underperformed at the box office. He has received praise for his roles in Sardar Ka Grandson and Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar. He has not received much acclaim for his film selections, but he is presently flying high. Saif Ali Khan’s career has been a rollercoaster as well. He had taken a break from movies and wanted to try something new. Sacred Games, in which he played a police officer named Sartaj Singh, was a breath of fresh air in his career. He’s had subsequent flops but it’s something that his fans have learnt about him. He always finds a way back.

In an exclusive chat with us, the Bhoot Police actors opened up on battling highs and lows. Saif Ali Khan says, “Success and failure are two different things but how you get through your low is by focusing on work and try to do as well as you can. The trick is like a top actor when you just had a big flop and you get up on Monday morning to go to work, you‘re a king, you deserve your money and you own your talent. It is slightly easier when you have a big hit, people are like wow.” He adds, “But to shoot like your back’s against the wall, something I respect about myself and Arjun knows exactly what I mean. That is the thing when you give a killer shot, good or bad but you know your job.”

Arjun Kapoor then talks about his lows saying, “Actors have phases. Sometimes you know that you are riding the wave when you sign some films and don’t know that they’ll do well or not. It’s the Friday that changes a film and turns it around. You have phases when you think that the film will not work and it works big-time and sometimes you’re backing yourself saying that this cannot go wrong and it just doesn’t pan out.” He adds, “I come from a privileged background of learning more about the profession before I started acting so I knew that I have to be prepared for this”. He says, “Social media became so relevant in my time so my low phase became very apparent. Every star has had, I am no exception but social media makes more noise about it now has volume as 2000 people have written negatively about you.15 years before this was not the situation. Earlier it was like okay, this one didn’t go well next will but now that he’s done, he’s not worth being an actor”.

He adds on saying, “You need to have a little thick skin to handle it as when I go to work there is nobody better that is why a producer is investing x amount of money in making a film. I know my job and I can be better at it. Phases will turn, I just have to be more diligent. Stardom for me is how you survive the rollercoaster of failure”.

Check out the full conversation below:

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