Farhan Akhtar Is Forever The Cool Guy

At a time when celebrity interactions are choreographed to perfection, with every conversation strategised, vetted and sometimes even reduced to voice notes, it’s rare to feel that a chat is worth pursuing.

This one was different.

Farhan Akhtar has always held a special place in the hearts of a generation for whom Dil Chahta Hai was more an anthem than a film. For those of us trying to make sense of our own lives, the story of three friends navigating adulthood gave shape to the very questions we’d been asking in private. Karan Johar may have owned the C-O-O-L necklace, but Akhtar gave it its cinematic coming-of-age.

Over the years, through his subsequent projects, he has established himself as a multihyphenate, cementing his cred as “the coolest guy in class.” Grounded in the right values, fun without being frivolous, ridiculously talented and unafraid to stand up for what he believes in, he’s the friend we all wish we had.

Yet, Akhtar is not all easy charm. Meeting him over video, I’d reckon he doesn’t suffer fools lightly. He’s unfailingly polite; at the Esquire India photoshoot, and later over our Zoom call, he is all business. Sharp mind, slightly prickly energy.

The moment his new film comes up, however, the edge softens.

120 Bahadur, inspired by the Battle of Rezang La during the Indo-China war in 1962, releases this November, 63 years after the incident. The film tells the incredible story of how 120 Indian soldiers from the 13 Kumaon Battalion bravely defended a pass in Ladakh against a much larger Chinese force. Outnumbered and battling extreme weather conditions, 114 of them lost their lives, but their heroism stopped the Chinese advance. Playing battalion commander Major Shaitan Singh, Akhtar acknowledges the immense responsibility the role carried. “People like Shaitan Singhji are made of a very different metal, jis mitti se bane hain woh ek alag mitti hai (the soil they’re made of is not like any other),” he says.

The 1962 war was a difficult one for India, which did not come out on the winning side. Yet this story of courage became a silver lining, something for a nation to hold on to and move forward with. Akhtar was excited to learn the patriotic song “Ae Mere Watan Ke Logo” was inspired by the bravery at Rezang La. “For me to connect with a man who really stood at the centre of it, and who represented hope, inspiration, everything we can aspire to be in moments of absolute tragedy, resonated deeply,” he says of the film that goes beyond the statistic to bring to life the people who sacrificed in war.

At a time when interpretations of national pride are often skewed and history is being rewritten, a film that looks back to a moment when the country came first feels especially necessary. “As much as we may have our differences, there is something that still unites us as Indians. When we see that flag or hear that national anthem play, no matter what God you follow, or which political party you support, it does something to you. That feeling supersedes everything else, be it the daily frustrations of watching people behave the way they do, the debates over language, food or culture,” he says.

The actor, who has rarely shied away from speaking his mind on current affairs, emphasises the story’s message with feeling. “It’s not about a divided India; it’s always about a united India. And that, to me, is a very, very positive thing.”

120 Bahadur also took Akhtar back to Ladakh, a place of special meaning for him. Lakshya (2004) and portions of Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013) were both filmed there. “I felt like an old wise sage on the mountain among all the first timers,” he says, cheekily. The schedule for Lakshya was unforgettable: five months in Ladakh with about 30 people. “It was the longest stretch and the largest film crew ever to have worked there. We were charting unknown territory; nobody knew what hurdles lay ahead,” he says, recalling the poor connectivity (no mobile phones), rough roads, harsh weather and the monotonous landscape that could wear down morale.

The cast and crew had to lean on one another to keep their spirits up, a sense of collective resilience Akhtar cautiously likens to the experience of troops stationed there. “You need a support structure around you to feel like you belong to something bigger than your individual needs. That’s what happened on Lakshya.”

Ladakh still has his heart. “There’s an energy about that place which is difficult to put into words,” he says. Grinning, he adds, “This is a shout-out to writers and directors: if somebody wants to do a road trip film with friends through Ladakh, I’m available.”

***

120 Bahadur director Razneesh Ghai, an army kid himself, grew up on stories of the legendary battle, and Akhtar tells me it was a dream project for him. Ghai has said Akhtar “kept him on his toes” during the shoot. “It’s very tough to direct someone like Farhan. He’s extremely demanding and expects you to be at your best every moment,” he admitted in an interview.

Akhtar brushes it off with a smile. “Rezi is being very modest. He was in complete control on set. If in some strange, subliminal way I was inspiring him to do better, I’m glad, because he did a great job.”

Given that Akhtar writes, directs, acts, produces films (and even sings!), you’d expect him to extend himself into every department. But he pushes back on that assumption: “Although I do many things, it’s very rare that I do them simultaneously.”

It’s why he’s never directed himself. “I don’t know if I’d be able to do that well, to be honest,” he admits. He points to Indian filmmakers he admires—“Rajji, Guru Dutt sahib, Manoj Kumar sahib”—who managed it successfully, but says he finds it hard to switch hats while already wearing one. “There is a certain degree of, whether you want to call it letting go, or confidence, that I haven’t naturally and organically arrived at yet,” he says.

Still, he’s open to trying. “It’s one of those dive-into-the-deep-end situations. You just have to do it and see how you come out on the other side, if at all you come out. I guess that’s the only way.”

Akhtar has directed four films in his 25-year career, three of which he’s written. (He corrects me when I say four. Lakshya was written by his father.) The last one he wrote, Don 2, released in 2011. I ask if he’s directed so sparingly because he prefers to direct what he writes, trusting only his own words and holding them to a higher standard than anyone else’s.

He considers this carefully. “I don’t have this idea that I write better than anybody else,” he says. “As long as I can find something in the story that I connect with—or in an action thriller like Don, the cat-and-mouse, the thrills and twists—I’m happy to direct something someone else has written.”

Good scripts, he reiterates, can come from anywhere, but there’s a caveat: “As good as it is, you have to find something in it that you can relate to. Because as the director, you’re going to have to live with it for a really long time.”

He tells me he’s writing Don 3, and my mind drifts to reports of his past differences with Shah Rukh Khan over the story, and how SRK had improvised on Don 2. I don’t bring it up, but the connection lingers as Akhtar circles back to my question about his writing process. “The script is a living, breathing thing, which evolves as you get closer to shoot. I’ve realised more often than not, that’s for the better,” he explains. “When we live with something for so long, we can be forgiving of its faults. But when someone new reads it, they can spot things you either didn’t notice or chose to overlook. You’re answerable for it, and if you don’t have an explanation, you realise something needs to change. That perspective can only come from fresh eyes.”

And that is why Akhtar believes choosing the right crew is crucial. “People who are like-minded, who understand why this film is being made and what it means to make it. I think that’s important because then they’ll see it the same way you do. That’s my experience,” he says.

***

Ask anyone in the business, and they’ll tell you the Excel Entertainment crew isn’t just a team, they’re a tribe. “We all trust each other implicitly. Everyone knows you can absolutely count on the other person when needed,” Akhtar says to my query about their connection. The core group communicates 24/7; there’s no cutoff for calls or messages. “And we love collectively telling stories,” he adds.

Founded by Akhtar and his Maneckji Cooper School friend, businessman Ritesh Sidhwani, Excel has produced almost 30 films since 1999. Akhtar told Variety he became a producer because of Sidhwani, who encouraged him to own his work.

That friendships matter to Akhtar is evident in the themes he gravitates toward in the films he directs and produces. After Dil Chahta Hai, there was Rock On!! (2008), Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011), Fukrey (2013) and Kho Gaye Hum Kahan (2023).

“I probably have a subconscious bias towards films about friends,” he says. “Stories about friendship are universal stories. My friends from when I was really young are probably the ones who kept me sane.” The actor, who has long been open about his struggles with his parents’ divorce and finding his purpose growing up, reflects, “Even at times when I didn’t really believe in myself, I had friends who did. Those relationships are very important to me.”

Akhtar turned 50 last year, a milestone he believes resonates more with those around him, including his wife, Shibani Dandekar, whom he married in 2022. He flashes a quick smile when asked what’s changed. “I feel like I should start behaving like I'm 50, although I don't know what that is. I'm just continuing down the path."

The one thing he is consciously working on is cutting out negativity wherever he can, be it habits, people and situations. “Life is precious, and we have enough stress with our work. So why bring it on in other places?”

In this new decade, he leans on advice he and his sister Zoya got from their father, legendary poet Javed Akhtar, and now plans to pass on to his daughters, Shakya and Akira. “He taught us to be unabashedly fearless for yourself. Don’t change who you are to make someone else happy. Just don’t do that,” he says, matter-of-factly.

Akhtar also reflects on his younger self, recalling how easily he used to get stressed.

“I’d tell myself to enjoy the journey a little more,” he says.

Behind his desk, a photo of Milkha Singh catches my eye, though it’s hard to tell if it’s the man or the character. Akhtar explains how stepping into Milkha Singh’s shoes was a turning point. “I didn’t respect myself enough, and I was struggling with that,” he muses. Embodying a man who had nothing but belief in his own ability to shape a future was cathartic. “He had no money. No support system. Nothing. Only this belief that I can do something. Living with that for a while changed me tremendously,” he shares.

The experience also brought a core realisation. “All our lives, we are taught to respect others. And that’s a great lesson. But we were never really taught to respect ourselves. Somewhere along the way, I lost sight of who I am, and what I’d like to feel about myself. That experience [of Bhaag Milkha Bhaag] brought that back for me, in some way,” he reveals.

For anyone who grew up feeling their opinions didn’t matter, Akhtar speaks from the heart. “Find your inner coping mechanism. Tell yourself your voice matters, your opinion matters. It doesn’t have to be taken by others, but it’s important that you voice it, if it’s something you feel deeply inside. And yeah, that’s okay.”

***

With so many creative pursuits on his plate, it’s easy to assume Akhtar never pauses. And while he does admit to “a couple of films that I've probably made about 25 times in my head, start to finish, in different ways with different actors,” it’s a relief to hear Akhtar does have a side outside writing, directing, singing and acting.

“I watch sport,” he says.

He’s a guy’s guy.

Football, cricket, volleyball, tennis—even swimming. “I love watching sport. And when I can play, I go play.”

He also loves strumming his guitar (does that count as downtime for a singer?) and hanging out with his dogs. He and Shibani adopted four Indies—Jimmy, Tyson, Rumi and Gigi. Akhtar lights up when he talks about them, stopping just short of sharing photos (I’ve seen them on his Instagram). “When we got the first one, we thought, oh my God, this is the best dog in the world. We'll never find another. Then the second one came along,” he says, grinning. “Seriously, I cannot imagine life without dogs.”

Speaking of life, it’s been over two decades since Akhtar gave us the anthem of a generation. In today’s world, where attention moves fast and everyone’s chasing the next scroll, the next drop, the next headline, how does the cool guy in class, who once led the pack, keep up?

Partly, by working with younger talent. On his experience with 120 Bahadur, he says it was a delight to work with younger actors, many making their debut with the film. “It's just amazing to feed off that enthusiasm, because I've been doing this now for 25 years. It reminds you of why you got into it when you did,” he says.

Akhtar made his own debut as a director with a cast of seasoned stars. “They took a chance on a 25-year-old with a script and no idea of how to produce a film,” he recalls. That’s partly why Dil Chahta Hai holds a special place for him. ‘It gave me this life,’ he says, simply.

In a way, he’s paying it forward at Excel, where most films are made with first-time directors. “We love working with new talent, not just in front of the camera, but even behind it,” Akhtar says. Among directors, he mentions Arjun Varain and Shakun Batra as bringing a “very new, different kind of eye”. Beyond storytelling and aesthetics, it’s how they see the world, and relationships in a post-digital, social media-driven era, that drew Akhtar to their work. “It’s very different from how we saw it when we were in our early 20s,” he says.

Behind the camera as a producer, Akhtar might be less visible but make no mistake: he’s far from slowing down. He’s got a great script for a girls’ road trip awaiting casting, he’s gearing up to finally roll cameras on Don 3 with Ranveer Singh, and with 120 Bahadur, he hopes to inspire a nation.

Could this be the start of the cool guy’s next act?

Dil chahta hai, yes.

Forgive the fan-girl moment.

Credits

Chairperson: Avarna Jain

COO: Jamal Shaikh

Editor: Rahul Gangwani

Fashion Director: Vijendra Bhardwaj

Photography: Sarang Gupta

Styling: Divyak D'souza

Editorial Mentor: Saira Menezes

Managing Editor and Interview: Sonal Nerurkar

Deputy Editor: Mayukh Majumdar

Hair: Saurabh Bhatkar

Make up: Devika Rathore

Styling Assistants: Khushi Bhatia; Brinda Patel

Bookings & Production: Varun Shah

Artist Management: Spice Official

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