Decoding Arjun Rampal: The Supermodel Years, Avoiding The Rat Race And The World Of Rana Naidu (Exclusive)

Arjun Rampal is the new entrant to the world of Rana Naidu in its second season, playing a menacing character called Rauf. He was also seen in Dhurandhar’s first look this week, where he plays a morally complex character. In a phone call with The Free Press Journal, he broke down the synthesis of the character, the supermodel years with Rohit Bal, and how he still maintains a sense of mystery about himself.

Q. What kind of research did you do for your role in Rana Naidu? Did the writing of the script make it easier?

A. Yes, it all ends up in the writing. That’s where the character finds his voice. That’s where the words, whatever he says, have meanings. But it also comes from what are the belief systems of the character. And so initially, when I was approached, they were in quite a nascent stage and just wanted to know if I would be interested to do it or not, and then they were going to write the character accordingly, which was quite unique and a different way of approaching something. So Karan met me and I said, ‘Listen, I’m a fan of Season 1 because I really like the complexities that you had created for all those characters. Every character had a wonderful journey. I loved the fact that your protagonist is also flawed and not a run-of-the-mill kind of character. So I would be a part of it as long as I get that same level of layer and complexity in my character to fall back upon, and then we’ll take it from there.’ And then they went into a couple of writing sessions, which we went back and forth on for a while. Of course, I have done a film like Daddy, and I could share a lot of my experiences from the research materials that I got with them. I wanted that the character could be very scary, but at the same time bring levity to the situation.

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Q. Would one be correct in assuming that you are fond of playing villainous characters?

A. A well-written antagonist is always fun to play rather than just a one-dimensional kind of character. But I don’t look at them as negative characters. I always look for ways to humanise them and not make it caricaturish. But honestly, there’s never been any one thing which I like to do. There are many things, and some of my upcoming films have me playing positive characters, so I try to mix it up. Getting typecast is my biggest fear, and that’s one position I would never want to be in.

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Q. Is the era of supermodels in India over?

A. I can’t see the future, but from how I see it- I was just at the right place at the right time. There was this whole boom that was happening within the fashion industry, not just in India, but all over the world. There was a trend of supermodels, and I think I was just lucky to be there with the right people, like Rohit Bal who discovered me and was my mentor. And then having the opportunity to work with fantastic models of that time — from Milind to Rahul to Mark to Dino Morea to John — all of them.

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Q. Is there any particular genre which you feel you haven’t explored, which you would want to?

A. I’ve more or less explored every genre. But what I would maybe like to explore more of would be more on the levels of a historical or mythological space, which maybe I’ve not really been in. That world really fascinates me.

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Q. With the whole social media culture coming in, I feel a lot of stars are sort of overexposed. You, on the other hand, have been able to strike a balance, still maintaining a level of mysteriousness about you.

A. I guess I just like my privacy. And I don’t suffer from FOMO. I don’t have those kind of problems. Honestly, I’m very comfortable in the space that I’m in. I enjoy watching people’s work. I like to appreciate that as well, like I just saw this wonderful film on Amazon Prime called Stolen. I think I’ve been very fortunate to have worked with the best. I’ve seen this industry closely, as closely as I think anybody can, and so I know what it is about. But at the end of the day, to get caught up in a rat race is not my scene.