The gripping rescue drama, Airlift (2016), completed 10 years on January 22. Starring Akshay Kumar and Nimrat Kaur, it depicted how Kuwait-based Indians were airlifted during the beginning of the Gulf War. Airlift was not a typical commercial entertainer and yet, due to the sheer power of its storytelling, music and Akshay’s starry presence, it managed to be a hit and even cross the Rs. 100 crore club. The actor was unanimously appreciated for his highly power-packed performance and for going all out for it.
In a crucial scene, Ranjit Katyal, the character played by Akshay Kumar, breaks down when he returns to his palatial house and realizes that his wife and daughter are missing. In a raw detail that startled viewers, a snort escapes from his nose as he breaks down, a moment of vulnerability rarely seen from a mainstream star. On the film’s 10th anniversary, director Raja Krishna Menon spoke exclusively to Bollywood Hungama about crafting that unforgettable scene.
When asked whether Akshay Kumar was apprehensive about it, he replied, “Not at all. It was a set of a house that we had built. Akshay loved that set a lot. We didn’t tell him that we were destroying the set. We explained to him that he enters the house, sees it has been vandalized and that his wife and children are missing. So, when he walked inside, he was actually in shock when he saw the condition of the house. Also, it was shot in just one take. At the end of the take, snort came out of his nose. We didn’t plan for it.”
Raja Krishna Menon continued, “I told Akshay, ‘Naak se snort nikal raha hai. Please don’t ask us to remove it because I think it adds to the beauty of the scene’. He replied, ‘You’re the director. Do you like it?’. I replied, ‘I’d kill to have an actor who wouldn’t mind snort coming out of his nose in a scene’ (laughs)! He agreed and asked, ‘Why do you need a retake then? Tu khush hai na?’. I reasoned that we might need one for safety. He replied, ‘Mat le safety ke liye. You won’t get such a take again’.”
Raja Krishna Menon further said, “Recently, I was watching the film again after 7-8 years. I realized that no amount of appreciation can do justice to Akshay’s performance. He was just fabulous.”
More Pages: Airlift Box Office Collection , Airlift Movie Review
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