Mumbai,
Dec 15 (IANS) Bollywood dude John Abraham has girls
drooling over him, but the one woman he finds "really,
really pretty" is his "Baabul" co-star
Hema Malini's beauty who he says is still the "the
Dream Girl".
"During
'Baabul' if I had shot one more day with her I'd have
fallen in love with her. She's really, really pretty,"
confesses John.
"Hema
Malini is either black or white. She always tells you
like it is. That's so rare in this industry where people
often say one thing, and mean another."
As
for Amitabh Bachchan, John has piles of compliments
to heap on his professionalism.
"But
forget about his work ethics. More importantly, he's
a nice man. When we meet he makes me feel so comfortable.
He exudes a positive energy. I always felt safe in his
shadow when I made my debut with him in 'Aetbaar'. Nothing
had changed in 'Baabul'."
But
John's best compliments are reserved for Rani Mukerji.
"I
learnt a lot from her. Rani exudes a lot of confidence.
Needless to say she's an amazing actress. Working with
her and Mr. Bachchan automatically raised the level
of my performance.
"I
need such support. People forget I'm still so new...
only three years in the industry. I'm far behind the
rest of my contemporaries."
After
"Baabul", John has a totally antithetical
release, "Kabul Express".
"
'Baabul is my first masala film. Newcomers generally
do conventional films and then go on to the unconventional.
I took the opposite route. I first did 'Jism' and 'Saaya'
and then came to 'Baabul'. After that I'm again back
to being completely unorthodox in 'Kabul Express'. I'm
back at the lunatic fringes in 'Kabul'."
But
John is equally confident about both his releases.
"'Kabul
Express has been tried before audiences in Toronto and
the US. Now I'm very confident about it. I'm sure it
will go down well with our audiences. Everyone know
the politics of Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, and
how we feel about Americans."
From
the socially relevant 'Baabul' to political parable
'Kabul Express', that's a long journey to make!
John
chortles. "People think my choices are crazy. They
wonder if I've lost my marbles risking my life in 'Baabul'.
Well, all I've to say is, I prefer riding bikes instead
of cars.
"I
love life on the edge. I love taking risks. I'm very
secure about my space in the cinema. I've made my choices
and I've stuck by my directors through thick and thin."
John
is now excited about Nagesh Kukunoor's "Ashaayen".
"It's
so beautiful! My role requires plenty of preparation.
Actually, there're two kinds of preparations. One is
the big-spectacle preparation where one prepares for
the action and dance scenes like 'Dhoom' or 'Cash'.
The other kind of preparation is my kind.
"For
my roles I've started preparing for those little nuances
that add something almost invisible to the role. There're
the larger-than-life roles and the life-size roles.
I believe in the life-size preparations."