I was a 35 per cent with grace marks student:RK

Ranbir Kapoor is on a hattrick this year. He looks all set to close 2009 with yet another solo hit Rocket Singh Salesman of the Year. The film opens next week with minimum publicity. But Ranbir Kapoor tell us why that's the best way to go about it.

As an actor do you think you need to sell your talent?
Ranbir: Not at all. One thing I will never indulge in is PR. I truly believe that PR is the death of an actor. Look at Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand. They went on and on for 25 years, just on the basis of their work. And fans did not get tired of seeing them because they weren't all over the place. In the end, it's about the films you do. Not about what you do in your personal life, which awards you bag or which NGO you support.

What's with your Sardar look in the film?
Ranbir: Honestly this is not a film on Sardars, so it's not the USP. It's a character you and me can identify with. The look is not an item in the film. It's about a young boy, fresh out college, who is just starting in the professional world. That time in a person's life when he has to battle with the corporate work force and make his mark.

Actors often complain of the beard and make-up when playing a Sardar…
Ranbir: I had no problems, as my mom is a Sikh. So that background helped me in my character. Shimit was very clear that I had to look like a real Sardar as opposed to being Ranbir Kapoor with a fake beard. So we paid extra attention on getting the look right.

What were the reactions from people close to you?
Ranbir: My Mom loved it. My nani (maternal grandmom, who passed away recently) too, was very thrilled seeing on me as a Sardar. It's great because for the first time I had changed my look for anyfilm. And now I have understood how important it is. The right look takes care of 20 per cent of your performance.

The promos have you talking about grace marks and flunking college. Any personal experiences?
Ranbir: Oh absolutely. It was just the same with me. I too was a 35 per cent with grace marks student in some of my papers.

Obviously your first name can't be Rocket in the film. So what's the relevance of the title and the paper plane theme?
Ranbir: My name is Harpreet Singh Bedi in the movie. The 'paper plane rockets' are a marketing tool to create curiosity and excitement. We believe that marketing a movie is about making the audience curious and leading them to the theatres.

But given that you had two back-to-back hits this year, why is the promotion so low key? Are you happy with the limited publicity?
Ranbir: I am very glad it's happening this way. Any other way of promoting the movie wouldn't have been fair. Ours is not a lavish film with exaggerated action and make believe song sequences. So we aren't going to cheat people by artificially over packaging the movie. Such a story needs to be handled with care. No flashy cuts needed here.

Finally Ranbir, how is the association with Yash Raj Films. You seem to be becoming a new favourite here.
Ranbir: This is family. My mom and dad have done so many films with them. And now I am doing some interesting work here. The banner's biggest strength is its working environment. Despite being such a huge name, they don't behave like or perceive themselves as some hotshot corporate entity. Yash Raj Films has the personal touch.