Varun Dhawan's experience with finding spirituality and searching for his greater purpose as an actor

Varun Dhawan has had his share of blockbuster roles as the charismatic main lead—from playing a charming Rohan Nanda in Student of the Year to an earnest Badri set on wooing in Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya—and even as a steely family man hellbent on revenge in the action thriller Badlapur. In his latest horror-comedy Bhediya, we’ll watch him transform into a werewolf. Ahead of its November 25 release, Dhawan spills the beans about his experience and his vision as an actor on the first day of the India Today Conclave held in Mumbai.

Harper's Bazaar: From Student of the Year to Bhediya, what’s the experience been like for you?
Varun Dhawan: The pandemic has been really tough for everyone—we have all faced our ups and downs, we have all lost loved ones. I know I have. So, it was really tough for me too. I went through a big change—I introspected a lot about what I wanted to do as an actor and the reason why I am here. I found spirituality during this period, and this film was just to prove that I am capable of doing something in this genre as well. 

HB: How did you prepare yourself for the role?

VD: The mental preparedness has a bigger effect on you, and after a long time—Ī would say, after Badlapur—it is this film that has mentally really consumed me. During Covid, the whole world had shut down and it affected all of us in many ways. We have all talked about it, but the minute the world opened, we went back to the same rat race and to working harder. Even I have pushed myself exteremely hard after the pandemic. 

HB: How did the pandemic change you and what you sought as an actor?

VD: So, I’ve never really shared this with anyone, but someone who worked with me for 26 years of my life...Manoj, passed away during that time. He thought he had Covid and then he recovered, but after a week he had a heart attack. This mentally affected me a lot. Everyone told me to move on—but how does one move on? It has taken me a lot of time to talk about this, and honestly, I’m still dealing with it. The biggest impact the pandemic has had on me is that I don’t want to judge people anymore—you don’t know what someone is going through, you don’t know about their losses. We don’t know what baggage someone is coming with. 

HB: Has the audience and what they want to see, also changed after the pandemic? 

VD: One hundred per cent. The audience is not going to settle for anything mediocre, for anything that is just 'okay'. Filmmaking is a service-providing industry, and so we have to pull up our socks and give them stuff that's top-of-the-line. 

HB: How do you see your future as an actor in this industry, especially in this pan-India industry—how does it define you as an actor, since you now have no limits?

VD: Both the box office and films are global today. In fact, I’ve recently done a film with Nitish Tiwari called Bawaal, which is set against the backdrop of the World War II, and we have shot in some of the most wonderful locations—in Normandy and all over Eastern Europe. We’re now trying to pitch it for the global audience and not only for the Indian audience. So, I think cinema shouldn’t have just one language—we all watch movies from different dialects and get entertained. 

HB: How has your journey been like as an actor and how have you progressed through the years?

VD: I don’t know; sometimes I look back and wonder if this is a dream. It’s really crazy. But as I said, we are all here for a purpose, and to be able to find that purpose. I’m also trying to find that—the larger impact that I can make on this world. 

Lead image: Varun Dhawan/Instagram