Aiyaary is not a war film: Sidharth Malhotra

This film is about two men in uniform serving their country but belonging to two different generations.

When director Neeraj Pandey was shooting for Baby with Akshay Kumar, the base of Aiyaary started shaping up in his mind. He made this espionage thriller after making MS Dhoni with Sushant Singh Rajput.
This film is about two men in uniform serving their country but belonging to two different generations and how their point of view clashes. The movie stars Sidharth Malhotra, Manoj Bajpayee, and Rakul Preet Singh. Here are excerpts from our conversation with the leading stars.
Sidharth Malhotra
2017 was not a great year for Sidharth since his two movies Ittefaq and A Gentleman crashed at the box-office. This is the first time that he is working with Neeraj Pandey.
What was your first reaction when the script was offered to you?
It was the combination of both the director and the script that made me sign the movie. I met Neeraj much before Aiyaary started and when he narrated the script to me, I felt that the story is so important and relevant that I had to be part of it. The director has such an amazing storytelling ability that every actor gets excited to be part of his movie. It's a fast-paced spy thriller. It talks about the issue that we haven't spoken of in the past.
What was the inspiration behind saying yes for your character?
I am playing Major Jai Bakshi who is the younger officer in the military intelligence. This character is very hard working, sincere, focused and if he finds something wrong in the system, he would stand up and do something about it. He represents the younger generation of officers in the military intelligence. He eventually gets pitched against Manoj's character who is his, senior, mentor and guru.
Can you give us a background of the movie?
It is not a war film.  It's an espionage thriller predominantly. It talks about different issues of the country. It's an entertaining thriller. But this is not a theme based film.
Are you a lover of spy genre?
I love spy thrillers. I grew up with the James Bond series, True Lies, Mission Impossible etc. Hollywood also does some real versions of a spy thriller. Even Aiyaary is the real version of a spy thriller.
What did you take away after working with your talented co-star Manoj Bajpayee?
It was inspiring to hear about his backstory and his journey. I have learned a lot from his experience and also by just observing his way of working. I will definitely carry forward all of this in my other projects.
How is 2018 looking for you?
2018 starts with Aiyaary. Finally. We didn't have a censor certificate until last week. The movie was supposed to release three weeks back. There were reasons beyond our control.
We really wanted to release the movie on January 26 but I think a good film will find its audience, no matter when it releases. I am doing another biopic and a college film this year.
 

Manoj Bajpayee
Manoj is working with Neeraj for the third time and put on around 10 kilos for the movie and immediately lost it as well.
Is it a happy start for the year when your first film of 2018 is with Neeraj Pandey?
It is always exciting when you are starting the year with a good movie in hand. Neeraj is a rare talent in the industry hence you have more than one reason to be happy.
What was the inspiration behind saying yes to your character?
Colonel Abhay Singh is a duty-bound officer. He is easily trusted for the most difficult task by the ministers and the army general. He can be cold-blooded if you are on his wrong side and friendly if you are on his right side. He is a great father and a husband and also dreaded by many. He is cold blooded but also very clever to get his job done. All of these elements make him a real human being.
One of the reasons why Aiyaary was postponed was because of Padmaavat releasing on January 26. Even Pad Man shifted their date. Does this mean that the industry is united?
I don't know about that but the thing is that Padmaavatwas always a big film. Coming with Padmaavat in a crowd will mean losses for everybody. Initially, we were the first one to shift our date as we didn't want to crowd that date. After a few days, even Pad Man took that decision which was good. If the industry starts supporting and empowering each other, it will only benefit all of us.
Is there any message that you are giving through this movie?
People say that Neeraj makes a patriotic film but I think that he makes great films. And if those films have some underlying message for our  country or our society then it is a great thing. For me, he is a great storyteller and a writer. It is always exciting to do a unique character like mine in the movie. Any actor in the film industry would give his arms and legs to be part of this film.
How is 2018 looking for you?
After this, I am doing an out and out commercial film Baaghi 2 with Tiger Shroff. Following that Galli Gulliyaan which has done the round of all the major international films including Dubai Film Festival in 2017. It was critically acclaimed everywhere and got rave reviews. I will start Abhishek Chaubey's next film. I will also start shooting for a Nikhil Advani film with John Abraham. I am doing a lot of mainstream films this year. 

Rakul Preet Singh
Rakul works very prominently in the Telugu and the Tamil film industries. She has worked in the Hindi film Yaariyaan before Aiyaary.
What was the inspiration behind saying yes to your character?
Aiyaary is an army based film and it talks about different layers of the country. It is not a patriotic or a war film but it talks about the issues of the country and the running of the system. I play a software expert in the film. Besides playing romantic interest to Sidharth Malhotra's character, I also play an important part in the core plot of the film which I cannot reveal now. It's an interesting star cast and also an amazing journey.
How is 2018 looking for you?
I just started shooting for my next Hindi film with Ajay Devgn and that will release in October. I am also doing two Tamil movies and one Telugu movie.
Is there any message that you are trying to give through this movie?
I am an army kid and I know how much effort goes into protecting the country. We are not trying to send out any message. People don't realise that the army or the Indian forces are not only at work when there is a war, they are  always working for the functioning of the multi-layered system of the country. People will get to know a lot about the system when they watch the film.  
arti@khaleejtimes.com