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Smooth sailing

John Abraham is holding his head above `Water'

Experiment is the buzzword in Bollywood, and the latest to swear by it is the resident hunk John Abraham. His Water has finally made it to theatres, and according to critics he hasn't done a bad job as a Gandhian in love with a widow. "Well, if you remember when I joined the industry people didn't see a conventional Bollywood hero in me. Remember the Jism days.

Today, it has turned into a unique selling point. Deepa signed me after watching Jism."

John says playing Narayan was not too difficult, for the character is intense yet endearing, which to an extent he is. "I had to work on the mannerisms.

I read extensively about people like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, those who went abroad to study and returned to work for the homeland."

Giving credit to Deepa Mehta, John reflects, "How many times do you come across a director in Bollywood, who holds a month-long workshop with the entire cast to help actors get the feel of the script? On the very first day of the workshop she told me she wanted John minus the model walk.

One of the advantages of a modelling background is that one is always game to try different looks. The most difficult part was cramming the Sanskrit shlokas from Kalidas' `Meghadootam'."

However, John has crammed them so well that at request he can still deliver them impromptu.

It was John who suggested to producer-director Ravi Chopra to distribute the film in the country.

"When I was shooting for Babul, I felt both Water and Babul are different takes on a widow's life. Why should audiences not see both the tales? I suggested the idea to Ravi and he agreed."

John, who started his career as a media planner, is averse to the term mob censorship, something Water had to face.

"At least the media should not use the term. They should be bold enough to name the political party."

Water has made him a known face in Hollywood, but John is not too enamoured of the offers coming his way.

"I didn't sign Water to work in Hollywood. I signed it because for a change, the script was the hero. And this will continue to be the benchmark."

For now, the experiment spree is on. He is doing Deepa Mehta's Exclusion, Anurag Kashyap's No Smoking and Vivek Agnihotri's Goal!

The latter doesn't require much hard work, for John was the captain of his college football team.

ANUJ KUMAR

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