Aparshakti Khurana talks music and acting roles

Aparshakti Khurana was never a stranger to spotlights. Ever since he was in school, the Bollywood singer and actor has been hitting the stage with his guitar. “I think that is where I developed my music sensibilities,” he tells City Times in a conversation over Zoom.

But it is safe to say that music runs in the family. While Aparshakti’s elder brother, Ayushmann is also an actor and a singer, the inception of music in the family comes from their grandmother. “My grandmother, who used to sing, had a musician in her and that’s probably where it all came from,” he said.

Aparshakti, as well as Ayushmann started their entertainment careers with films but gradually got around to singing songs as it is their passion. While Ayushmann has delivered hits like Paani Da Rang and Nazm Nazm, Aparshakti has sung Kudiye Ni (2019), and the most recent Balle Ni Balle, which is emerging as a massive hit among the audience. The music video has already garnered over 7 million views on YouTube in two weeks, and is already a trending song on other social media platforms.

While Balle Ni Balle may come off as a sad, break-up anthem for Gen Z, Aparshakti thinks only the meaning of the lyrics are a “little heartbreaking” but in a “quirky” manner, whereas, the overall arrangement, sound, and the video of the song has nothing “sad” about it. “It is very cool, very uber, and tells modern-age stories,” he said.

You may wonder if Aparshakti is dedicating this song to someone? He laughs and says, “Not really, but just wanted to do something new in music for a while.

“It was a little effort to show the audience a different side of me. To show the audience that I also sing a little here and there.” But he assures acting is still the “main job” and music is his passion. “And I am really happy that the audience is giving me a chance to sing,” he said.

Balle Ni Balle comes nearly three years after Kudiye Ni, however, Aparshakti has composed over 10 songs, but just isn’t finding the time to work on them.

The newest song sees Aparshakti alongside Dhanashree Verma Chahal, who has also choreographed the song.

On working with Dhanashree

The actor had a fantastic time working with Dhanashree. “She is a passionate, and disciplined artist,” he says. “The moment she came on set, there was a different kind of energy.”

“It is really important to work with people who energise the set to the max, which is very vital during a music video shoot.”

When asked how such songs have the tendency to go more viral, he says, “Anything which is different from what has been done before gets picked up by the audiences and, yes, it (Balle Ni Balle) is definitely different from what people have previously seen.

“They will watch and listen to the song and say that there is a ‘very creative and quirky’ attempt to the entire audio and video approach.”

Digital Debut

Aparshakti will mark his digital debut with Vikramaditya Motwane’s upcoming show. “It’s an amazing world of two superstars from the 40s and 50s competing for the top spot,” he says. “It also portrays the changes in filmmaking during the partition, and how it started in India.”

“It’s a period drama, it’s a very different world, and I have never done anything like that before.” Aparshakti is looking forward to the show’s release at the end of the year, and believes the audience will love the world it is set in.

Aparshakti, who has a flair for comic roles, and has starred in a number of films like Luka Chuppi, Stree, and many others, will also be seen in Berlin, a spy-thriller. And he is looking forward to the release, in what will also be a first for him in said genre.

“People have given me a lot of love and appreciation for my comic roles, and I hope they bless me with the same for my serious roles as well,” he said, adding that both types of roles are equally difficult in their own way and he, as an actor, has put his best foot forward.

When asked which type of role he prefers, the actor said, “It is a tough call,” further adding, “people these days look out for comedy films because there is so much stress in life for various personal and professional reasons.”

“People want to come back home and just have a lighter moment, however, I, as an actor, prefer all the worlds. I prefer working with good people on a good script. That is what all artists crave and I am no different, I also love being in different characters and worlds.”

Those who have watched Aparshakti on screen may have noticed how perfectly well he garners the audience’s attention by playing the role of a lead’s best friend. Films like Pati, Patni aur Woh, Luka Chuppi, and Stree are some of the films in which Aparshakti guarantees a laugh. “Touchwood, I have made a career out of it,” he says, “and I am really happy that people appreciated my efforts.”

“I also want to thank all the writers who have written these parts, because of which I received so much appreciation. I think it is very difficult for a writer to write such lines for a character who is not the main protagonist. And, kudos to all the actors, producers, and directors who kept it the way it was, giving me a chance to be a part of people’s lives in a very different way.”

Celebrity Football Match

Aparshakti is set to play a football match in Dubai. The actor, along with Bollywood stars Abhishek Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor, Kartik Aaryan and others will be a part of a star-studded game of football between two celebrity camps which will take place this evening at the Shahab Al Ahli Stadium, Mamzar.

The celebrities will take on a talented UAE-based community football team, Emirates United, led by Nasser Al Neyadi and include others such as Bakhit Saad, Ex UAE Footballer Mohammed Qasim and social media celeb Abdulaziz Binbaz.

And the actor/singer has always been into sports, cue his cricket tenure during which he captained the Haryana U-19 cricket team. In football, the actor usually plays between left-back and left-wing positions.

• UAE