Our imperfections give us the best stories to tell: Ayushmann

Ayushmann Khurrana has championed the imperfect hero on screen with elan in all his films like Vicky Donor, Dum Laga Ke Haisha, Bareilli Ki Barfi, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, Article 15, Badhaai Ho, Bala, AndhaDhun. He considers imperfect characters to be the most real and strongly believes that audiences connect to such people instantly due to relatability.

His belief isn’t misplaced because the versatile star has delivered seven back to back hits with his unique content choices that people have started hailing as ‘The Ayushmann Khurrana Genre’.

Ayushmann tells , “Our imperfections make us real and everyone connects to people and stories that are absolutely real, that they can easily relate to  and are believable. People should be able to see the problems, the joys, the pain, the victories, the ambitions, the imperfections and say yes we are like this, we feel the same thing and we have lived the same life. And this is what drives me to choose my films.”

He adds, “I’m on a constant lookout for imperfection because invariably they give us the best stories to tell. An imperfect man can do something incredibly heroic and that’s what the audience will love about it. Triumphing over one’s situation, one’s own self are the stories that people love to see.

If you look at all my films right from Vicky Donor to Dum Laga Ke Haisha to Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, Article 15, Andhadhun, Dream Girl, Bala, etc I have played an imperfect hero, a flawed human being who goes through his own struggles to do something out of the ordinary. These are the characters that appeal to me because such characters are genuine and fortunately the audiences have also loved these on screen.”

Ayushmann reveals that he finds perfection boring because it’s not real. “There is an inherent charm about imperfection which is infectious. They are highly interesting, they have a distinct personality, they have a gripping journey and it’s very appealing. Perfection is quite passe today because we have all realized that we are imperfect and we celebrate that quite vocally.

We no longer aspire to become perfect, we aspire to be better. We recognise that the struggle is real and we celebrate who and what we actually are. We aren’t afraid to look into our own eyes and accept ourselves in our truest form. That’s what I want to champion on screen through my work,” he says.