“I lost confidence after ‘Raavan’ flopped” – Abhishek Bachchan

By Bollywood Hungama -

April 19, 2011 - 12:00 AM IST

“I lost confidence after ‘Raavan’ flopped” – Abhishek Bachchan

He's going through a rough patch professionally, what with RAAVAN, KHELEIN HUM JEE JAAN SEY and GAME sinking faster than Titanic at the box-office. DUM MAARO DUM, his new release, is expected to pull Abhishek Bachchan out of the crisis. A tantalizing song, pulsating action sequences, a generous dose of skin show, an ensemble star cast... DUM MAARO DUM seems like the perfect package to woo the viewers in hordes. At least initially. Thereafter, the content will do the talking.

Abhishek doesn't deny he's nervous. "I haven't watched the film in entirety. Sure, I have watched the rough cut, but not with the complete background score et al. I've been travelling, promoting the film in various cities, so I haven't really had the time to watch the final print. But I am nervous. There's an extra pressure on this film," Abhishek tells me.

Was he disheartened when RAAVAN, KHELEIN HUM JEE JAAN SEY and GAME failed at the box-office? "Of course, I was! It breaks you completely. I was shattered when RAAVAN failed. I couldn't shoot for the next 10 days. I lost confidence after RAAVAN flopped. Prior to RAAVAN, people had praised my restrained performance in PAA. With RAAVAN, they said he doesn't know how to act. The media doesn't make you forget your failures. RAAVAN was released almost a year ago. It's time to move on, right?" he states with utmost honesty.

Well, when you have Mani Ratnam, Ashutosh Gowariker and Farhan Akhtar/Ritesh Sidhwani backing the projects, people aren't going to forget that easily. "Exactly! In the first place, how many actors would say 'No' to these names? RAAVAN came after the success of GURU. Similarly, I signed KHELEIN HUM JEE JAAN SEY soon after Ashutosh delivered a hit in JODHAA AKBAR. There were date issues then, so he started work on WHAT'S YOUR RAASHEE?. If given a chance, I'd love to work with them again. Who wouldn't?" True!

It's said his portrayal of the cop in DUM MAARO DUM is similar to the one portrayed by his father in ZANJEER. He enacts the role of a tough cop out to cleanse Goa of narcotics mafia and sex trade. Also, the talk within the industry is that the film abounds in drug-n-sex scenes. "To answer the first part of your question, well, let's not even compare it with ZANJEER. As for the generous dose of sex-n-drugs in the film, let me clarify, DUM MAARO DUM is a normal chor-police story. It's not that the sex-n-drugs bit forms the main part of the film. The drug menace happens to be the backdrop," he elucidates.

Well, everyone's hopeful that the title track - filmed on Deepika Padukone - will prove to be the driving force. Does he agree? "Yes, of course! Let's be honest, isn't good music the driving force these days? Don't we state that just one chartbuster song can make a film work? Besides the title track, the youth has reacted wonderfully to 'Thayn Thayn' as well and if the songs act as the key factor to lure audiences, it would be great," Abhishek says.