Move over Aamir, Salman and SRK: 2018 belonged to Ayushmann Khurrana

Actor delivered two unconventional hits this year - Badhaai Ho and Andhadhun

When the trailer of Badhaai Ho came out, it was almost certain that it will touch upon subjects considered taboo, and maybe that's what made it a must-watch in the first place.

The film was very well received by the audience.  Similarly, when the trailer for Andhadhun was unveiled, it kept us on the edge of their seats with its intriguing story line. Both these films have one thing in common: the protagonist was 2018's 'it' boy, Ayushmann Khurrana.

While the Bollywood Khans failed to make a mark this year (case in point: Salman Khan's Race 3, Aamir Khan's Thugs of Hindostan and Shah Rukh Khan's Zero), 2018 was all about the younger, dark horses.

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"I was really confident about Badhaai Ho. I knew it would do really well," Khurran said in an interview with The Indian Express. "We knew Andhadhun would be critically acclaimed and we’ll attain a respectable number at the box office. Now I think both the films have surpassed all our expectations."

"For Badhaai Ho also, I had a certain number in my head, but it is unstoppable. The numbers that the film has made, are overwhelming," he commented on the success of his rom-com. "But I am very bad with numbers. I can only creatively think about my film and whether it will resonate with people or not. The more the film resonates with its audience, the more it translates into numbers," added Khurrana.

PHOTO: HINDUSTAN TIMES

The actor, who made his Indian cinema debut with another critically acclaimed film Vicky Donor, asserted that he knows the amount of expectations the audience has of him.

"Now people have certain expectations from me. They expect that I will do films with great content, and it is a great expectation to have. I am glad that the next couple of scripts that I am reading and the ones I am trying to zero in on, are quite decent and are from the same space and yet unique. I am sure these films will also resonate with people. I now know the kind of expectations people have from me, and I am happy about what they expect from me," said the 34-year-old star.

Ayushmann says if one is in a steady relationship, there is no fun without being messy. PHOTO: FILE

Khurrana confessed he was nervous about having multiple films release simultaneously.

"I was really nervous last year. Everybody was saying that one of your films will suffer for sure. It had never happened that two films of the same actor had released in such a timespan," he said. "So, in that sense, last year was a case study. Both Bareilly Ki Barfi and Shubh Mangal Saavdhan were running parallel and going houseful. Both the films did well. So I was more relieved this year. Last year both the films were very similar, as in both were in the same zone. Both were slice of life films."

He feels if you lend your voice to your character, it shows credibility as a performer. PHOTO: FILE

Talking about Badhaai Ho and Andhadhun, Khurrana added that both films were of different genres, and hence, it worked.

"Both the films were so different, one was a thriller and the other one was a slice of life film. It all just worked. I was confident. For the first time, my film had a festival release. Badhaai Ho had a Diwali release, and it helped the film. It worked this time, but, ideally, there should be a gap between two films," he said.

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