Films are not for education: Arjun Kapoor

With Ki & Ka, Arjun Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor Khan have started a conversation about gender stereotypes and how it is okay to be a “house husband”. In Hyderabad on Wednesday, the two spoke about the city, the movie and hit back at Shabana Azmi’s recent comment against Kareena for doing item numbers.

About friends in Hyderabad
“Kareena was especially excited about the food. She’s already had her idlis for lunch,” said Arjun as Kareena added, “I love South Indian cuisine and Hyderabadi food. Not just that... it’s so good to come here and see the way the roads have been made, so spacious and open.” To this Arjun jokes, “Kabhi inhe poorane Hyderabad (old city) ki taraf leke jaana. But I must add that that part of the city too has it’s own charm... I had shot Wanted there.”

While Kareena has been to the city for work commitments, Arjun has “many friends”. “I have friends in the city. My best friend’s sister got married to a family here. I know Ram Charan very well and I have known Rana Daggubati for years.” Kareena jokes, “Unko bhi bulaalete promotion ke liye.”

She adds, “Mahesh Babu and Namrata are very close friends of Saif. So he keeps sending some of his films to Saif and they are really nice.”

Item numbers
Moving to a more serious topic, about how item numbers have been a bad influence, Kareena and Arjun both hit back at Shabana Azmi’s recent comments. The actress had said at an event that ‘If top heroines sing I am a tandoori murgi, swallow me with alcohol (hinting at Kareena’s Fevicol Se item number), it’s a serious issue... don’t they have any responsibility?”

“Everybody has their opinion, everybody is saying so many things about item numbers. Yes we have a certain amount of responsibility. But I am also an artist and this is a form of entertainment. It will be hypocritical to say that nobody likes dancing to item numbers or listening to them because at every wedding, party, night club, people of all ages dance to Fevicol Se, or Chikni Chameli or Halkat Jawaani. I am sorry if I hurt anybody’s sentiments.”

Adds Arjun, “Everybody has an opinion but eventually you will have to be educated better... Films are not for education. Films are a reflection of society more or less because what works is what we make.”

“In that case, a man should not hold a gun,” says Kareena as Arjun adds, “Yeah, it’s not a laughing matter to hold a gun and kill people.”

Kareena continues, “To murder people, or make thrillers about murderers and show them on screen, or to show a psychopathic killer like Shah Rukh Khan’s character in Darr. Don’t make such kind of movies because that also influences society.”

 ‘Not open to Tollywood or Hollywood'
“I would love to do a Tollywood movie but I don’t understand the language. I think language is a huge barrier and it will hinder your performance,” says Kareena. She adds that she is not interested in Hollywood either. “I never had this thing to do a Hollywood film.”

But at the same time, she lauds her colleague Priyanka Chopra. “It is amazing that she is putting India on the map. I want to give her the utmost credit because you feel so proud when you see her doing so well. I have different priorities now, I can’t give that much time. I don’t know if I can give too much time to balance two careers,” she adds. Kareena also wants to pen her autobiography, “I know it will be very entertaining”.

Saif is possessive
“Saif is possessive about me but not about my work,” says Kareena adding, “That’s one thing that’s great about him because he allows me to flourish.”