Shahid Kapoor on Kabir Singh vs Arjun Reddy: We are not a copy-paste film

Shahid Kapoor is not nervous about Kabir Singh being compared to the Telugu original Arjun Reddy, because he thinks that the two films are not identical. However, he was initially hesitant to come on board because the source material was extremely loved by the critics as well as the audience.

In an interview with an entertainment website, he said, “When I first saw Arjun Reddy, I fell in love with it, so I would say that I’m an Arjun Reddy fan. I fell in love with Vijay Deverakonda’s performance, I thought he was spectacular in the film. The first thought that crossed my mind was, ‘This is something that is so beautifully done, why do you want to do it again and spoil it?’ Because there is no written confirmation ki yeh wali bhi badi achchi ban jayegi.”

“When you do something for the first time, there is a certain value attached to it because it’s original. There is more shock value as people are seeing it for the first time. I do feel that probably 97-98 per cent of the Hindi audience has not seen Arjun Reddy so for them, it will be a completely original film. But for the 2 or 3 per cent who have seen it and might be interested in watching Kabir Singh, that will be the challenge, to see how people respond to that,” the actor said.

Shahid revealed that he was drawn to the role of Kabir Singh, which is why he gave his nod to the film. “My reason to do the film is very simple. I fell in love with the film and if I have an opportunity to play that character as an actor, I don’t want to let that opportunity go because I know that roles which have so much for you to do come very rarely. You must not run away or be afraid of challenges. I have always embraced challenges and they have given me a lot. They have enriched me as an actor and an artiste, and I have got a lot of love for doing roles like that,” he said.

Talking about comparisons with Arjun Reddy, Shahid said, “I was not at all afraid or nervous because I don’t think Kabir Singh and Arjun Reddy are the same person. If someone cannot understand or make their peace with that, then God bless them. We are not a copy-paste film. Kabir Singh is an individual in his own right. I feel that the only way to recreate a film is to do it all over again like you were doing it for the first time and that is how we have tried to do the film.”

Directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, Kabir Singh revolves around a hot-headed surgeon who becomes an alcoholic and drug addict after a failed relationship. The film, which also stars Kiara Advani, will open in theatres on June 21.