Bollywood star Suniel Shetty has opened up about his experience working on ‘Welcome to the Jungle’, and shared his experience of working with an ensemble cast of “dhurandhar” actors in the film.
Speaking
about his character, Yeda Anna, the actor joked that audiences have long believed the character is forgetful and slightly crazy, adding with a laugh that age may now be making him genuinely resemble the role.
“Everyone thinks Yeda Anna is a crazy person who forgets everything. The truth is, I’ve actually started becoming like that. I forget names, I forget things, and I keep asking, ‘What was that? What was that?’ Sometimes I feel Yeda Anna hasn’t really changed in me. Age ki vajah se hoga (It might be because of age),” he said.
While the film is packed with action, comedy and larger-than-life moments, Shetty revealed that the toughest challenge was not the action sequences but maintaining a straight face amid the nonstop humour on set.
“It is an action, comedy, fun film. But the problem here was not of action. Problem yeh tha ki aese mahaul mein straight face kaise rakhe (The problem here was how to keep a straight face in such an environment.) Kyunki co-artist jab koi punch line maarta hans dete the shot kat jata tha (The real challenge wasn’t the action. It was keeping a straight face. Whenever a co-actor delivered a punchline, everyone would burst out laughing),” he shared.
He added, “To challenge ye tha ki hum logon ko hasayenge par khud nahi hansenge (We had to make people laugh without laughing ourselves, and that was the hardest part).”
Directed by Ahmed Khan, ‘Welcome To The Jungle’ boasts one of the largest ensemble casts. Apart from Akshay Kumar and Suniel Shetty, the film also stars Disha Patani, Jacqueline Fernandez, Arshad Warsi, Jackie Shroff, Paresh Rawal, Raveena Tandon, Lara Dutta, Farida Jalal, Johny Lever, Shreyas Talpade, Tusshar Kapoor, Rajpal Yadav, Krushna Abhishek, Kiku Sharda, Daler Mehndi, Aftab Shivdasani, Mukesh Tiwari, Yashpal Sharma, Kiran Kumar, Zakir Hussain, Vindu Dara Singh, Urvashi Rautela, Hemant Pandey, Brijendra Kala, Feroze Khan, Puneet Issar, Sudesh Berry, Jeetu Verma, Vrihi Kodvara, Adityaa Singgh and Bhagya Bhanushali, among others.
Praising the film’s massive ensemble cast, Shetty said the chemistry among the actors is what gives ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ its unique appeal.
“This film is not about one person. Yeh 25-30 dhurandhar actors ki film hai (It is a film of 25-30 ‘dhurandhar’ actors). That’s where the charm is, that’s where the hype comes from. Everyone has their own fan base and followers, and together we will take this film forward,” he said.
The veteran actor also spoke about the importance of multi-starrer films at a time when many young actors worry about sharing screen space. According to him, actors should fear failure, not success.
“Today’s youngsters often become insecure when it’s a two-hero or multi-hero film. But your security lies in doing such films and entertaining audiences together. When you perform alongside a fellow actor and support each other, the film works. Failure should be the biggest insecurity for an actor. Success can never be insecure,” he stated.
Highlighting recent examples of successful ensemble projects, Shetty pointed to films where multiple stars shared the spotlight while still receiving individual appreciation, reinforcing his belief that strong collaborations ultimately benefit everyone involved.
“You see ‘Dhurandhar’, it’s a multi-star cast film that has worked. It’s ‘Border’ (Border 2), a multi-star cast film that has worked. There is Sunny Deol, there was Diljit Dosanjh, there was Varun Dhawan, still Ahan (Ahan Shetty) got his place.
‘Welcome to the Jungle’ is slated to hit theatres on June 26.
