On Her Unconventional Romance With Karan Kundra!
"Karan Is Very Besharam; He Starts Fighting In Front Of Everyone"
Hundreds of shows on television come and go. But there are very few that are brought back on public demand. Kitani Mohabbat Hain is one of those few shows, which came back for a second season. Not only that, it is now even being aired in countries as far as UAE with Arabic subtitles! One of the main reasons for the show's tremendous popularity is its lead protagonist Kritika Kamra, who plays the endearing Arohi Sharma. In her first ever interview with our magazine, we got the vivacious Kritika to speak about her two loves – the show and her co-star cum boyfriend, Karan Kundra.
As an actor, one constantly looks for opportunities to dabble in different kinds of genres. So when Kritika decided to take up the second season of KMH, many eyebrows were raised. Doesn't she feel like she is doing the same show all over again? She defends her decision, "There wasn't any conflict in my mind. KMH2 is not a sequel. If it was a sequel, then maybe I would have thought about not taking it up. In this season, I am getting to play a totally different character, in a brand new story, but under the same name, which has been accepted by the audiences. There were a lot of other factors involved too. I was getting to work with Balaji Productions and Karan again. Basically, KMH2 started off from where we had left. Also, I love my new character, so it doesn't really matter."
She's not one to be afraid of getting stereotyped and doesn't feel that KMH2 is a copy of the original. "There are two ways of looking at it. What you term as repetitive, could be 'comfortable' for me. I get to be in my comfort zone. I wanted to work with a channel that was treating us well and wanted to have us back. It is very flattering to know that the show got a second season only because the viewers wanted so. And it wasn't just all talk; Imagine TV got thousands of fan mails for us! The fans spammed their website with messages asking them to bring the show back. Also, the nervousness, if the show will be accepted by people, was lesser. We have such a loyal audience and they have made Arohi what she is today."
In spite of what people have to say, she's proud of her show. "I don't know of any other serial that has come out with a second season before KMH2. Obviously, after ours there have been shows like Choti Bahu 2. The idea was to create a brand called Kitani Mohabbat Hain and take it forward by making different love stories." And they have succeeded in doing that.
Yet, the audiences haven't warmed up to the second season, like they had to the first. How does she feel about that? She replies, "I always knew that the second season won't do as well as the first because people would be expecting a lot. They wanted to see the same thing we did in season one and we were not giving them that in KMH2. They were too used to the earlier story. But the basic feedback is pretty much the same because people who were watching the earlier season are the same ones watching this one too."
One of Kritika's USP is that she, unlike other young actresses, isn't essaying roles that are much older to her. Her character Arohi is young and peppy, quite like her real self. Has it been a conscious effort on her part to play such roles? "Not really. Everything just fell in place. I prefer to play my age and take up characters that young people would want to watch. I don't want to wear saris or do a show based on social issues. I am not for the whole 'regressive' trend on TV. Sometimes, such shows may be challenging for an actor, but I don't think these shows help. It's a faade. They say they make them to solve social issues, but nothing is getting solved; because if they solve the issue, the show will be over. They are just selling their show."
When told that the audiences are interested in such content, she says, "The market is constantly bombarded with new genres. First there was the saas-bahu drama, which I wanted to keep away from. Thankfully, I got a love story with Balaji, who was the pioneer of saas-bahu sagas and later, a lot of reality shows hit the scene. After that came the regressive, rural-based shows. I know the masses want to see all this, but I really don't care. We have a different audience, which is the youth and we are proud of it."
She moves on to talk about her relationship with boyfriend Karan Kundra, who's also her KMH2 co-star. They've been together for quite sometime but initially, when there were rumours of a romance brewing between them, the two brushed those off. Why did they hide their relationship all this while? "We've never hidden it; it's just that we ourselves didn't know about our feelings. People only started tagging us as a couple and called it a relationship. We didn't mind that. There was nothing to hide and I would never like to hide it. In fact, I am very proud of the fact that he's my boyfriend," she clears the air.
She does believe that it's not uncommon in the television industry for actors to keep their relationship under wraps. "It's very funny. A lot of actors don't come out in the open about it, because they want to maintain a certain image. There are some who are in relationships only to grab attention. But I won't lie; even we got a lot of attention though it wasn't intentional. I am glad it wasn't just a phase and has lasted."
And she doesn't think their off-screen romance will hamper their careers. "It's not like we recreate our off-screen romance on screen! It's different when two hundred people on the set are standing in front of you. It's not romantic at all. It's our job and we have to do it. I know Karan will romance anyone else also as well as he romances me on screen. As much as we look like a romantic couple, we're not. It's difficult when people want us to act all mushy. It's just not our thing. We have a very tough time doing that. We are more of the back-slapping kind of buddies and we prefer it this way. It's so much better."
If you think Karan as Arjun in KMH is an adorable boyfriend, take Kritika's word when she says he is much better once the camera stops rolling. "He is a better boyfriend than a co-star! He's going to kill me for this but I don't care. Of course, it's nice working with him too. We share a comfort level and know each other to the extent that we can criticize one another. We respect each other's opinions, so it helps." Her only concern is that she's mixing work with pleasure. "Our personal and professional lives aren't separate. They are entwined and I blame Balaji for this. They make us live together on the sets for 40 hours at a stretch."
But at times, doesn't she feel the need to take a break from Karan, considering they are 24/7 together? "It's a boon. We give each other space, even if we are together. If he wants to play a game, he will just tell me to f*** off! There is no liability or formality left. It's been years that we have been working and we have spent so much time together. It's good that he is around, because the way Balaji shoots, I would have cribbed a lot if we weren't working together." And they do have their share of disagreements, "We have a lot of fights. He is very besharam; he starts fighting in front of everyone," she mockingly complains.
Just 22 years of age and raring to go, all those who want to see Kritika and Karan settle down in matrimony will have to wait some more time for it to happen. "I am not going to be a balika vadhu. Please don't ask me that question. We are actors, and since we have time and age on our hands and are getting good work, we will work. Also, I want to earn money, make my life secure and then settle down. You see, I just want to chill after marriage," she says confidently. Point taken!
*By Purvaja Sawant
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