I’m a people person

Farah Khan’s status as Bollywood’s Miss Congeniality faced a stern test in the media storm that followed her decision to cast Akshay Kumar in Tees Maar Khan, instead of good friend and the sole lead for her previous ventures, Shah Rukh Khan. But the choreographer-turned-director maintains that no amount of talk can sour her relationships in the industry.

“Eventually, I am a people’s person and no amount of unwanted talk can ruin my relationship with anyone. I like being happy and keeping people happy around me. In this industry, there are no permanent enemies, nor are there many permanent friendships. One day, two people might seem to be at loggerheads and the next thing you know is that everything is hunky-dory between them. If you detach yourself from such talk, things will be fine,” says Farah.

“I have a lot of friends around me. My childhood friends stood by me even when I was not successful. I have friends like Karan (Johar), Shah Rukh (Khan) and Sajid (Nadiadwala) in the industry. They love me and I love them. Whether we work together or not, we will always stand by each other.” she adds.

Farah has achieved so much success with her two directorial ventures Main Hoon Na and Om Shanti Om that there’s no looking back for her. “I don’t see life that way. Every day when I wake up, I have so much work to do. But I must say, when I look at my triplets I feel proud that I have achieved so much in life,” she says.

Farah agrees that motherhood changed a lot in her life. “It has made me both selfless and selfish at the same time. I’ve become more selfless because I don’t think about myself anymore. Only my babies, matter now. I’ve become a lot more selfish because I want the best for my babies. I even took the bold step of turning into a producer for my three kids. I feel my children should not become complacent either but should learn to fight for themselves,” she says.

Life took a complete U-turn after husband Shirish Kunder came into her life. “I would have never married nor had babies had it not been for Shirish’s presence in my life. He is a very talented person and I am not saying that just because he is my husband. Shirish is also a wonderful father who is always there awake at night when the kids cry. I always wanted my son to be a mama’s boy but he is a papa’s boy.”

Commenting on the rumours about Shirish’s womanising, she says, “Though those rumours hurt me, I didn’t let them affect me because I love him. I just let things die their own death.” She also adds, “Today, we are two directors who have started their own production house Three’s Production. This leaves us in a strong position, as we don’t have to wait for people to call us. He is the business head and I am the people’s person. Though we do have our share of arguments, they are all healthy arguments for the betterment of the film.”

Speaking of casting a known star for Tees Maar Khan, Farah says, “I am searching for a new girl and if I find her by January I will have to groom her like I did with Deepika (Padukone). If not then I will sign a known face. The film is full of fun, emotion, drama and action. I will never make a sad film where people are crying. What is the point of leaving my babies at home for work and not being happy at the end of the day?”