Varun Dhawan’s Body Double Becomes A Star

‘I’ve
had
a
10-and-a-half
year
journey
behind
the
camera
and
people
don’t
know
who
I
am.’

Sky
Force
may
not
have
become
the
hit
debutant

Veer
Pahariya
needed
but
he’s
still
in
the
news,
thanks
to
nepotism
debates
that
still
won’t
go
away.

No,
Veer
is
not
a
star
kid
but
in
a
recent
question,
the
way
he
handled
a
question
on
Ibrahim
Ali
Khan’s
launch
by
Karan
Johar
is
being
questioned.

Whatever
the
trolls
may
say,
Veer
is
just
getting
started.

He
looks
back
at
his
big
break
and
tells

Subhash
K
Jha,
“I
auditioned
for
a
Maddock
project
but
didn’t
get
it
because
I
think
the
day
the
we
cracked
the
screen
test
and
look
test,
it
got
shelved.
So
it
was
a
long
waiting
process.
Then
in
2021,
I
was
onboard
for

Sky
Force.”

There
was
a
backlash
about
your
easy
access
to
your
debut.
Does
this
take
away
from
the
joy
of
the
film’s
success?

Not
at
all.
I
think
to
be
in
a
film
like
this
which
pays
homage
to
a


real
hero
of
the
1965
war
was
an
honour.

People,
who
have
watched
the
film,
have
given
so
much
love,
so
there
is
only
joy.

Tell
us
about
yourself.

I
was
born
in
Mumbai.
My
parents
had
a
rough
separation
and
that
had
a
negative
impact
on
me
as
a
child
because
everything
was
widely
covered
in
the
media
and
the
divorce
affidavit
was
out
in
the
public
domain.

But
growing
up
as
a
child,
I
really
wanted
to
escape
and
have
my
own
voice.

I
wanted
to
do
something
on
my
own.

Was
movies
that
outlet?

Yes.
I
didn’t
have
too
many
friends
growing
up,
so
movie
characters
became
my
best
friends.

I
spent
a
lot
of
time
trying
to
evolve,
so
I
would
spend
time
with
music
instruments.

I
developed
an
interest
in
writing
and
would
direct
short
films.

I
used
to
be
on
stage
perform
at
Shiamak
Davar
(concerts).

Growing
up,
I
moved
to
Delhi
and
went
to
boarding
school.

I
realised
I
wanted
to
act.
So
everything
in
my
life
has
been
towards
achieving
that
dream.

How
long
did
it
take
your
dream
to
fructify?

Post
school,
my
first
job
was
on
a
film
called

Alone,
which
released
in
2014.

I
worked
as
an
intern
assistant
director
on
that.

Following
that,
I
worked
as
an
assistant
director
on
ads,
learned
production
design,
I
worked
in
the
costume
department,
sound
department…

I
also
assisted
Resul
Pookutty
on
a
show.
I
learned
mixing,
mastering
and
sound
engineering.

I
used
to
lend
my
voice
as
a
rap
artist
and
singer
for
ad
jingles.

Then
I
started
a
YouTube
channel
for
my
songs,
which
I
would
direct.

At
just
20,
I
used
to
perform
all
over
Maharashtra.

That
gave
me
a
lot
of
confidence
to
face
the
camera
because
I
started
learning
about
angles,
lighting,
camera
facing
etc.

Then,
I
went
to
college
in
the
UK.
I
have
a
dual
degree
in
finance
and
management.

While
I
was
there,
I
was
focusing
on
my
music
and
my
stage
performances,
and
I
started
taking
dramatics
as
a
minor.

When
I
came
back
from
university,
my
first
job
was
as
an
assistant
director
on
a
film
called

Bazaar.
From
there,
I
went
to
the
pre-production
of

Satyamev
Jayate.

I
was
also
a
host
of
a
live
show
on
a
gaming
app.
That
also
taught
me
about
being
spontaneous,
improvising
and
performing
for
the
camera
when
you
don’t
get
second
takes.

That
was
just
before
COVID
when
I
wanted
to
quit
everything
and
focus
on
my
performance
and
give
auditions.

That’s
quite
a
lot
on
your
resume!

I
started
focusing
on
acting
from
2019
when
I
started
auditioning.

I
cracked
four
or
five
projects
where
we
had
done
the
look
test,
poster
shoot,
signed
the
contract
but
at
the
last
moment,
somehow
it
would
be
taken
away
or
there
would
be
no
funding.

Then
I
happened
to
get
into
Maddock
films
by
selling
my
music.
Fortunately,
they
liked
it.
But
I
told
them
that
I
really
wanted
to
act
or
assist.

So
your
real
journey
began
at
Maddock.

I
had
the
good
fortune
of
assisting
Amar
Kaushik
sir
on
a
film
called

Bhediya
where
I
also
body
doubled
for
Varun
Dhawan.

I
did
a
lot
of
his
action
sequences
and
you
know,
standing
on
his
line.

After

Bhediya,
I
left
Maddock
and
worked
in
a
casting
agency
called
Anti-Casting
as
a
casting
assistant.

I
auditioned
for
a
Maddock
project
but
didn’t
get
it
because
I
think
the
day
the
we
cracked
the
screen
test
and
look
test,
it
got
shelved.

So
it
was
a
long
waiting
process.

Then
in
2021,
I
was
onboard
for

Sky
Force.

How
do
you
look
back
on
the
experience
of
working
in

Sky
Force?

It
was
a
memorable
experience
getting
in
character
for
Squadron
Leader
T
Krishna
Vijaya.

I
had
read
every
single
material
that
exists
in
any
book
in
the
world
on
him
and
the
1965
air
war
on
the
Internet.

Maddock
Films
sent
me
to
four
air
force
bases,
Pathankot,
Gwalior,
Lohegaon
and
Suratgarh.

I
was
also
at
the
Delhi
headquarters,
where
I
made
friends
with
squadron
leaders
my
age,
who
give
their
life
for
the
country
every
single
day.
Based
on
their
personalities,
I
got
that
swagger,
the
style,
the
walk,
the
stance
etc.

What
did
your
preparation
for
the
role
entail?

My
preparation
was
in
three
parts.

The
first
was
my
acting
training,
where
I
went
to
a
number
of
workshops.

The
second
part
was
spending
time
with
officers
at
air
force
bases,
perfecting
the
salute,
the
handshake,
the
walk,
the
sitting
posture…

Thirdly,
I
lost
all
my
body
fat,
my
muscle
mass
and
got
super-lean.
I
maintained
an
eight
pack
through
the
shoot
because
the
cockpit
is
very
small
and
you
should
be
able
to
fit
your
legs
otherwise
you’ll
not
be
able
to
eject.

So
I
put
a
huge
emphasis
on
the
body
type
of
a
fighter
pilot.

I
had
the
good
fortune
of
flying
in
a
real
fighter
jet
to
understand
what
it
is
to
take
the
force.
I
am
a
licensed
pilot.

You
actually
fly
planes?

I
did
because
of
the
film.
I
took
that
opportunity
to
learn
and
experience
that.

I
also
really
wanted
to
do
it,
so
I
could
take
it
off
my
bucket
list.

Towards
the
end
of
the
filming,
we
were
able
to
meet
the
Devayya
family.
Mrs
Devayya
is
90
years
old
and
she
gave
us
some
insights
and
anecdotes
about
her
husband,
his
personality
and
luckily,
we
had
pretty
much
matched
that
in
the
film.

What
was
it
like
working
with
Akshay
Kumar?

Akshay
sir
is
a
gem
of
a
person.
I
was
very
intimidated
before
we
started
shooting
because
I
had
imagined
that
he
might
be
like
this
or
like
that.

Honestly,
when
I
met
him,
he
was
the
nicest,
warmest,
most
comforting
and
welcoming
person
ever.

In
one
second,
he
broke
the
ice.

I
was
nervous
and
he
could
sense
it.

He’s
a
hungry,
passionate
actor
and
wants
to
get
it
right,
so
he
would
rehearse
with
me.
We
would
do
the
lines
many
times
and
would
try
different
ways
of
doing
it.

Because
we
were
making
an
emotional
film
based
on
a
true
event,
it
was
an
intense
to
shoot.
So
he
would
tell
us
stories
and
help
us
get
in
and
out.

So
it
was
a
huge
blessing
to
have
an
action
superstar
as
my
co-star.

He
taught
me
the
run
for
the
camera,
how
to
take
impact
on
a
mattress,
how
to
dance
on
camera…
it
was
like
attending
a
film
school.

In
hindsight,
do
you
feel
that
this
privilege
that
the
trolls
are
targeting
you
for,
is
more
a
disadvantage
than
an
advantage?

Not
at
all,
sir.
I’ve
worked
very
hard
to
be
here.

I’ve
had
a
10
and
a
half
year
journey
behind
the
camera
and
people
don’t
know
who
I
am.

People
never
took
an
interest
in
my
life.

In
fact,
on
my
trailer
launch
even
though
I
was
sharing
the
poster
with
Akshay
sir
and
my
name
was
on
the
poster,
a
journalist
addressed
me
by
another
name. 

Nobody
knew
who
I
was.

But
since
I’ve
been
trolled
so
much
and
there
is
so
much
on
social
media
about
me,
I
guess
I
don’t
need
to
introduce
myself
anymore.