“Giving my sweat and soul to my job”
Tiger Shroff – the name is associated with parkour, pirouettes and packing a punch. Ever since his first film Hero – a namesake of his dad Jackie Shroff’s first film, the boy has been unstoppable. While his latest Student of the year 2 is struggling to match the box office collection of Student of the Year series Part 1, released in 2012, nevertheless the Tigerians, as his fans call themselves, are growing in number each day. With a social media team that works overtime, Tiger is one of the biggest sensations online and his tribe is only growing.
Tiger Shroff is a robot. He is programmed to do only good; he can do no bad. He is perfectly sculpted, he is extremely well-mannered, and he doesn’t err – thus he is not human. Sitting in the Dharma office, waiting for their new Student, one wondered if he has his dad’s humility or he has developed a chip on his shoulder with all the successes that have come his way. His one wide and warm smile dissipated all the wonderings. Engulfing all he knew with a warm hug, adding a Sir and Ma’am to us, in every sentence. Told you, Tiger can do no wrong. However, does he feel the pressure of his own choices in life? We needed to ask that…. But first, he needed someone to remove the plate of samosas sitting before us. The savouries were making Tiger uncomfortable, “Just that smell makes me feel like I have indulged on junk, the amount of oil used to fry these things is very bad.’’
Don’t you have cheat days? Though it was not the question I had hoped to start with, it needs to be asked…
I don’t take my health and fitness lightly. I know my responsibilities as an actor and as a public figure, and I would never compromise on it. I want to give my fans the best of me. Cheat days don’t help my six pack (abs).
While that’s right, aren’t you ever tempted?
More than being tempted, I am insecure. I have followed my father’s career very closely, I have seen him through his hits and flops, I am where I am courtesy of him, but I cannot take my time here for granted. Yes, I did get a break because I am his son, but I need to earn my own bread.
You have already got a place for yourself; I don’t think your fan-club (mostly teenagers) see you as Jackie Shroff’s son….
I am so blessed; my fans always make me feel blessed. But my existence is courtesy of my father, so I will always be Jackie’s son. I wish I had 10% of his charm. I work so hard to achieve the perfect look, to fight perfectly, to dance perfectly and he just has to come into the frame and his fans are gushing; now that’s swag!
You were overloaded on swag for Student of The Year 2, so you can hardly complain. Tell us about your first Dharma experience…
My most vivid memory was walking onto the sets of the film and everyone saying Tiger Sir this, Tiger Sir that…. I have always been simply Tiger. I did everything I love in the film and the best part was having two girls vie for my attention; no man could have asked for more *winks*.
Were you like Rohan (his character from Student of The Year 2 ) while in school?
Firstly, no school will be like St. Teressa, how I wished we had only sports and dancing in our schools. To add to that fact, Rohan is very comfortable in his skin. He knows that girls like him and he is chill about it. In school, if I heard some girl liked me, I would have started palpitating. I would be thrilled but also scared because I wouldn’t know the first thing to do to woo her. I was painfully shy as a kid and no one really understood that; they would think I had airs.
You seem pretty comfortable with your alleged girlfriend, Disha Patani…
Will ignore the girlfriend bit, but if people think we are going around, then I will be the happiest person. Just look at Disha, she is stunning. Yes, I am most comfortable with her. She has that about her, despite being so beautiful; she is very warm, always making others feel good about themselves.
So, you might be thrilled to be working with her again in Baaghi 3!
Of course, I am looking forward to it. On many levels, Baaghi 3 is a film I am anxious to start. When the first Baaghi released, I didn’t think it will be so widely appreciated because we were newcomers; however, it went on to break records. Next, during Baaghi 2, I didn’t think the film would cross 50 crores but it did. I think it was the last action sequence that really made the difference. Whatever it is, our small film was amongst the top grosser. I am well aware of how much that adds pressure on Baaghi 3.
I am no longer just showcasing my talent, I am shouldering the responsibility of the films I do. My name comes with a certain kind of expectation today; I need to ensure I don’t disappoint those who counts on me.
After a point, wouldn’t your audience get tired of seeing you doing only action sequences?
I cannot ignore the fact that my fan base is courtesy of my action prowess. I am obviously keen on doing something more; I am aware that people don’t think I am very versatile but they have not really seen me do other things in the movies. Once they do, hopefully, they will change their opinion. As an experiment, I would like to do a film with no action or dance and see how the audience takes to me then, but the sad fact is that no one is offering me something like that!
But do you think there is scope to change the action scene from here on, we think you have already done it all…
I have dreams of taking it beyond the realms of everyone’s imagination. Akshay Kumar Sir, Ajay Devgn Sir – they turned the face of action in Bollywood, I want to further what they started, not only in Bollywood but beyond. For instance, I don’t think there has ever been an Indian action star in the west; I would really like to change that too….
Coming to the Hrithik VsTiger film, why has everything gone quiet on that front?
We have finished shooting the action portions; we have yet to begin with the dance because frankly, it is too hot to do anything right now. After the short break, we will resume. But I can assure you of one thing, there will be nothing quiet about this one, I am thrilled, I am proud and even scared…. Thrilled because I am getting to work with someone I call my hero, proud because whatever we have shot thus far, is looking really nice. Scared because I am pitted against someone I look up to. I know one thing for sure; it will be a film that takes everyone by surprise.
You are always touted for your perfect moves, yet you are relatively new in this industry. Don’t you get worried at times when you are on the sets?
When we shot Alia Bhatt and my ‘Hook up…’ song, I kept wondering if I would match up to her. She is a very big star and I have just about started but then I watched her practice the moves, give her 2000% to the song, and I realised that everyone who is someone today is because of their hard work. Thankfully, I have never been the type to shy away from giving my sweat and soul to my job. Yes, I worry, I get insecure and even panic, but I know that my hard work will make it up for everything.
