Akshay Kumar scored a massive hit with his first movie of the year Airlift, which was based on a real evacuation operation from Kuwait during the 1990 Iraqi invasion. Kumar said he immediately agreed to do the film because it told an important real story and human drama that was hidden in history. Although his character was based partially on businessman Ranjit Katyal who led the evacuation, Kumar did not meet or prepare by meeting him, instead relying on the director's research. Kumar was happy with Airlift's box office success and believes it is a film everyone should watch to learn about this important historical event that is not well known.

1. Exclusive Interview
AskhayKumar
AboutAirliftandhis
FutureProjects
Here is an exclusive chit chat with Bollywood
Superstar Akshay Kumar who scored a massive hit
with his first movie of the year Airlift.
How did Airlift
happen for you?
The director Raja Menon
and Nikhil Advani, who has
produced the film, came to me
with the script. I immediately
said yes, because it’s a real
story and a human drama. It’s
a story that was hidden in the
recesses of history. I loved
the idea of bringing it out to
the audiences and show them
what exactly happened in
1990.
Your role is based on the
life of Ranjit Katyal, who is a
businessman in Kuwait. Could
you tell us more about that?
That’s true but I cannot talk
about him. He’s still alive and
a big businessman today,
living in Kuwait. But I didn’t
meet him. Raja Menon met
him and spoke to him over
the phone. But my character
isn’t completely based on
one person. There were three
or four people like him, who
were involved in the operation.
We’ve combined all their
stories for the character but
Ranjit Katyal was the main
guy. We’ve changed his name
in the film. I should bring to
your notice that in 1990, he
was a multimillionaire but he
lost everything, got everybody
back to India from Kuwait and
today, he’s a multimillionaire
again. He’s earned back all his
money.
How did you
prepare for your
role?
I didn’t do any kind of
preparation for Airlift. I grew
my beard. When you read a
script, you feel and you go
on the set and realise what
they must have felt. Main
Kuwait toh jane se raha
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2. (I’m not jumping on a flight
to Kuwait); neither will I tell
anyone to conduct a bomb
attack so I could feel what
they went through. I’d once
watched Balraj Sahni’s Waqt
and I can never forget that
the happy family in the film
experiences an earthquake
and their lives are left in
shambles. Everything is gone.
That movie stuck in my mind.
The same thing happened
with Ranjit Katyal. Lots of
people lost their lives and you
know, the biggest trouble was
that the Iraqis were killing
a lot of Kuwaitis. And they
use to come to Indians and
ask, “Kuwaiti? Show me your
passport?” But when you work
outside India, you cannot keep
your passport with you. You
have to give it to your boss. So
they use to kill Indians, too.
Did you know
about the
evacuation when it
happened?
I entered the industry in the
same year, 1990, when this
happened. I was unaffected
by what was happening at
that time, but when I got to
know about it recently, it’s
unbelievable. They have so
many videos of it also.
Do you think Airlift
is a film every one
should watch?
People should take their
children to watch this film
and this episode should
be in school textbooks
because when we talk about
history, they don’t mention
the operation. There’s a big
political reason why they didn’t
talk about it. At the time, we
were very close to Saddam
Hussein and we wanted to
keep very low profile, which
is why the whole thing was
hidden. There was only one
article written about it. It’s an
honour to do a film like Airlift.
We hear you’ve
learned Arabic
especially for the
film…
I have spoken little Arabic in it,
but I must say that it’s a very
hard language. It was not easy
for me to pick up. When they
gave me the lines, I had to
memorise and then say them.
But if you ask me to repeat
them now, I can’t.
What was it like
working with
Nimrat Kaur?
Nimrat has worked in
Hollywood. So who’s the
bigger star - me or her?
(Laughs). She has done some
of the scenes so well. She is
an international actress.
After Airlift, you’ll be seen
in Housefull 3 and Neeraj
Pandey’s Rustam. Tell us
more about them.
Rustam, is similar to Airlift,
in the sense that it is also
based on a real character and
his story. I enjoy everything
that’s why I’m signing it and
doing it. Action comedies are
comfortable for me but an all-
out action film is challenging
for me. So, I enjoy doing
that. While Rustam is a
challenging role, Housefull 3 is
a comfortable one.
Are you happy
the way Airlift is
performing at the
box-office?
Yes, I am very happy with
the film’s success and I am
glad the film has huge figures
already. Airlift is a film that
everyone should watch.
Yes, I am
very happy
with the film’s
success and
I am glad
the film has
huge figures
already.
Airlift is a film
that everyone
should watch.
Exclusive Interview
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