Ali Fazal unintentionally began his career as an actor. “It was an accident in school. I used to play a lot of sport and broke my arm in a basketball match. So someone told me to try out for the annual play. I tried and it worked. I discovered another side to me, won awards and now am here,” he explained.
Fazal is one of the ensemble stars in Bollywood’s latest youth-aimed flick, Always Kabhi Kabhi.
Since school Fazal has landed a few parts in some of Bollywood’s biggies, but it was his role in 3 Idiots which he credits as his “big break”.
“My first acting break, and the big one, was a small part I played in 3 idiots that, surpri-singly, touched a lot of people’s hearts. The movie was also one of the biggest hits Indian cinema has seen.”
His film idols hail from Bollywood and Hollywood … Amitabh Bachchan, Al Pacino, Javier Bardem, Hrithik Roshan, Amir Khan and Shahrukh Khan.
In Always Kabhi Kabhi Fazal plays the part of Sameer.
“Sameer is the quintessential friend, the trouble you don’t want and can’t live without. He is the charmer every girl will flirt with. Also a jugaadu, ‘Shortcut Sam’ is what they call him. But you see him mature through the entire process,” Fazal explained, saying Sameer was similar to himself.
“Sameer is a shade of me I discovered on my road to transformation into this character. He takes me back to my school (days), when I was the cool dude – played pranks on friends, broke rules and grew up.”
Fazal said being on the set of Always Kabhi Kabhi was fun and saw him gain more “family”.
“The cast are my friends and family now, not a week goes by that we don’t hang out – a result of amazing chemistry on and off screen.
“My first audition was with Giselli (Monteiro) and we’ve hit it off ever since. She has an eye for the camera, I like that about her. She looks like a sweet, shy girl, but in reality she is very smart, very talented.
“Satyajeet Dubey, my buddy, is one of my best friends today. I couldn’t have done it without him, I love the way he follows a routine when it comes to work. Very few have that discipline. He is a great actor.
Zoa Morani is full of surprises. We’ve had a great time together. I believe Zoa has come a long long way as an actor. I liked that she would always have questions for the director, finding out more and more about the character, about the moods of the scene. On set I believe it was as good as school, full of fun, but at the same time lots and lots of work.” he said.
Of director Roshan Abbas, Fazal said he was “a perfect mix” of crack the whip and friend.
“He was strict when needed, but a friend and a father to all of us in our good and bad times. And I don’t just mean related to the movie, but in reality, too. He has shown me the light in the tunnel of Bollywood. He is a very focused director, someone who gets under your skin and has the ability to get the best out of you,” he said.
Fazal said part of why he auditioned for the role was that after a long time someone “had the guts to make a school movie”.
“(Tackling) the part of youth when life actually changes, takes off and makes you a human being. Also, when Roshan narrated the script, what was attractive was that this story is told by all four individuals and does not revolve around a conventional hero and heroine.”
With his acting career picking up momentum, Fazal said he hoped to continue growing, but at a later stage in his life he would like to try his hand at directing.
Commenting on the pressures of balancing career and his private life, Fazal said he had spent the past year on the road for this film.
“It’s still very new for me. I think the balance is in one’s head.”
We asked Fazal what he’d do in a hypothetical situation in which he had 24 hours to do what he pleased – and had access to any form of transport and a blank cheque.
“I would send my mom to her favourite holiday spot, fill in the amount needed to buy out five of the biggest hotels in Vegas and spend the 24 hours with the one I love. I’d fly to Milan, where I would crash a coffee joint, set myself a nice breakfast at the piazzas, watch a play, shop till we drop, then catch the Euro rail and go backpacking all over Europe.”