In 2011, a young actor from Indore blew the audiences’ collective mind with his 12-minute uninterrupted one-take monologue on What Women Want (or, rather, what men think women want) in Pyaar Ka Punchnaama. A star was indeed born. Now after Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, Lukka Chuppi and Pati Patni Aur Woh, Kartik Aaryan is considered one of the most box office-friendly actors of the post-Ranbir generation.
Anees Bazmee, who directed Kartik in Bhool Bhulaiya 2 and three years later Bhool Bhulaiya 3, says, “I would like to say that he has grown a lot as an actor in two years. But as a person, he has not changed at all, he is the same as he was before, and let me tell you he is very hardworking. Stardom hasn’t come easily to him. He works very honestly and I am so happy for his growth and for him. As far as his films are concerned, these two Bhool Bhulaiya films have been big hits and in the other films, his work has been praised a lot. He keeps generating a lot of jokes in his personal life also and keeps laughing a lot. He is a cheerful boy, he understands comedy, he has done a lot of comedy in the films he has done before, so I never faced any such difficulty. From Bhool Bhulaiya 2 to 3, I have always had the same love and affection from him. Kartik loves me. He likes me and our equation is very good, work gets done very easily, so I enjoy his company on the sets, it is a lot of fun. It is great working with him.”
Adds Kabir Khan, who directed Kartik in what is considered the actor’s best performance to date. “The level of dedication I saw in Kartik just blew me away. He was the epitome of focused dedication, unwavering in his determination to get it right. I would work with him again anytime.”
Kartik says he would rather not be a Friday-to-Friday star. What he seeks is constancy in his career. He would rather be a good chooser than a bad loser. He apparently narrates the scripts the projects offered to him to his mother, who knows what the audience wants and what is good for her son.
