Adil Hussain: ‘Glimpsed that spirit, concentration, in Janhvi’

Janhvi Kapoor plays an IFS officer in Ulajh; (right) Sridevi and Adil Hussain in English Vinglish

Adil Hussain opens our morning conversation about Ulajh with the disclaimer that he is contractually bound from talking about the story. "Every twist matters," he reasons. Sudhanshu Saria's directorial venture drew the actor because of the complex relationships it depicted within the setting of a spy thriller. "It is about the bravery of a young woman, who wants to defend her country's honour. I liked that the film isn't jingoistic. Sudhanshu and I were to work before, but that didn't happen. When he came with this, I said yes," recounts Hussain.

The upcoming release is fronted by Janhvi Kapoor, who is joined by Gulshan Devaiah, Roshan Mathew and Rajesh Tailang. Hussain says he was pleasantly surprised by the leading lady, even noticing in her certain traits of her late superstar-mother Sridevi. "She inherently possesses some steadfast qualities of an artiste. A film set is daunting. Janhvi has sharp concentration. I had seen that in Sridevi when I worked with her [in English Vinglish, 2012], and I saw glimpses of that very spirit in Janhvi. She has the willingness to be in the moment, deliver what's needed by the director, and is mindful of the film's best interest."

Adil Hussain

Hussain lives in Delhi and divides his time across diverse movie industries, from Malayalam to Khasi and Norwegian. The idea is to only do those films that appeal to him. "I don't have a publicist or an agent; the scripts are chosen by me. My budget might be higher than what they can offer. But if a film artistically appeals to me, I try to accommodate it. I envision an India, where a film's artistic interests match its commercial interests."

Working towards that goal, he will next be seen in Blue 52, helmed by Egyptian director Ali El Arabi and co-starring Neha Dhupia. The movie follows a 22-year-old Indian soccer fan, who escapes from his controlling father's grip and heads to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The film stands for something bigger in the current scenario, notes Hussain. "People are being killed in thousands, and the world is watching them die. At such a time, it's necessary that we watch films coming out of conflict areas [as they] evoke empathy. I watch a lot of Iranian, Russian and Japanese cinema to understand where they come from. We need to stop telling binary stories of heroes and villains. We need more movies with an understanding of human beings, ones that help us understand the ‘other' better."