EXCLUSIVE: I had shot with Leonardo DiCaprio for ‘Blood Diamond’, says Gaurav Chopra

After having started his journey in showbiz with modelling, which later paved the way for Gaurav Chopra to transition from being a model to an actor. The resultant of his acting talent were shows like ‘Ssshhhh...Koi Hai’, ‘Saara Akaash’, ‘Left Right Left’, ‘Gulmohar Grand’... the list is endless. Amidst all this, he had also participated in the globally famous international show ‘Dancing with the Stars Georgia’. Not the one to restrict himself to acting alone, he also started doing voiceovers and dubbing. Of late, he was seen in the extremely appreciated in ‘Rana Naidu’.

OTTplay caught up with the man of many talents for an exclusive interview. Over to you, Gaurav…

To start with Gaurav, how is the feeling right now?
This is a new phase of my life. It’s something like you have been running for a long time and that you are changing tracks. And even though you are changing tracks, perceptionally, you have been on the same track. We eventually realise that we all live two lives. One is what we are actually doing and the second one is the perceived one with the perception that the opposite person has about you. Success for any actor, in my modest opinion is not about money or the name that you have made. It’s all about the audience’s appreciation and the basic satisfaction in your heart about your work.

Your career looks only upward bound...
It’s not at all like that my friend. I have had my share of ups and downs and failures as well. Sometime back, someone had invited me to speak at the TedTalk. I chose to speak about failure. And then, they named it as ‘Celebrity Failures’. It was about every time you really fall down, you just have to be aware of the fact that you can’t really fall further. And, you just have to find the strength within to stand up again. And when you stand up again, you will see a better tomorrow. I have seen a lot of setbacks, lots of roles which were cut off from the final edit… and many such things. The reason why I don’t complain about its is because, its all part of the package. Had you not seen the downs, you will not be as strong as you are today.

How do you handle rejection?
When a person is being considered for a role and someone rejects that person, then, it becomes a lot more personal. That’s because, someone has rejected your face, your voice, your presence, your interpretation, your intelligence, your talent, your creativity… there are so many aspects of this. And it's a lot more sensitive and personal.

Gaurav, you have been there done that. Anything else remaining that you want to still achieve?
I must mention here, that, in the year 2006, I had shot with Leonardo DiCaprio for ‘Blood Diamond’. And this is before any of the Indian stars had gone to Hollywood. I was shooting with them for 10-15 days. The film is such a classic in terms of the social statement that it had made. Anybody who had seen the film, it stays with the person.

Any other Hollywood offers after that?
I was signed on by an agent during the film itself. They were very happy with what I did. And he was kind of asking me to move base, and be available for tests, auditions, look tests and meetings and have had the correct visa. And it would mean that I would have to give up on all of the work that I was doing here. And the timing was such that I was I was being considered; I was getting awards for my performances. I was being considered a star. I was being followed, I was being photographed, I was being noticed, personally and professionally. I was I was cast as a French journalist in in ‘Blood Diamond’, because, when they met me, they thought I look European with my long hair!

Despite having a degree in fashion designing and that too, from NIFT (National Institute of Fashion Technology), no less. Still, you chose acting as a career. So, did you thank God stating that, you know, thank you God for the ‘design’ that you had chalked out for me, or did you ever regret why I did not choose my career in designing?
I have no regrets whatsoever. All of this happened on its own. My then-girlfriend used to tell me that the best version of Gaurav that she sees is when I act. Let me give you an anecdote. My final collection at NIFT was my own collection!

With so much action these days, don’t you ever fear getting hurt?
The level of safety on the sets nowadays is so much better than before. Since I have been doing action regularly, I am qualified enough to tell you that over the years, because I've been consistently doing action, I can tell you and vouch for it that the standards of safety have improved immensely. If you if you keep your focus and you listen to the fight masters. The chances of you getting hurt are very, very minimal.

Carry on..
Now, what happens is that people get carried away and what happens is what happens is that people don't follow instructions or, or are not able to sometimes control their body movement in this way or that way. When they jump, the jump beyond the point or before the point. And fitness is only one part of it. It requires timing, the way you require timing for a dialogue, you're someone else is saying dialogue, you your dialogue has to come in between your timing has to be correct. Similarly, the jump has to be just at the right time. If you just take care of these things, it's not that not that difficult. But the one thing that it does for you is as an actor, in that moment of playing the part your conviction doesn't break. ‘Rana Naidu’ had me spraining my ankle, but, that’s also a part of the game.

Let’s touch a bit about ‘Rana Naidu’…
I had singed ‘Rana Naidu’ almost simultaneously with ‘Bachchan Pandey’, where I played a sadak kaa local gundaa. And when ‘Rana Naidu’ was offered to me, it was the role of biggest film star in the country. That was my first motivation to say yes to the role. ‘Rana Naidu’ will stay with me for many years. The show got me such immense reaction from everyone. The show offered to me such a wholesome experience.

What next after all this?
You will soon see me in the most-eagerly awaited film ‘Gadar 2’.-