Namastey London, starring Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif, turns 15 today, and the film has a special place in everyone’s heart. On the Anniversary of the film, we came across a throwback interview with Katrina when she thought the film would be a disaster and she was planning to pack her baggage and look for another work. However, she had no idea that the film would have a significant impact on her career.
Vipul Amrutlal Shah directed the 2007 romantic film, which starred Rishi Kapoor, Javed Sheikh, Upen Patel, and Clive Standen in supporting roles. The film was a box office hit upon its initial release, and Akshay was nominated for a Filmfare Award for Best Actor.
Earlier, when Katrina Kaif appeared in Koffee With Karan, the actress recalled the time when she saw Akshay Kumar starrer Namastey London for the first time, she said, “When I saw the film, I was terrified. Vipul (Amrutlal Shah, director) showed it to me and said, ‘What do you think?’, I didn’t call him back. You know, when a director shows the actress a film, you have to give him feedback. I took off home, shut the door, and didn’t give him a call.”
Later, Katrina Kaif received a call from Vipul Amrutlal Shah’s assistant, saying that the filmmaker was ‘really upset’ that she did not give feedback for Namastey London. The actress added, “I called him and I said, ‘Hi Vipul.’ He asked, ‘What do you think?’ I said, ‘Nice, very nice film. Okay, bye’,”
During the time, she felt that Akshay Kumar starrer might be the end of her acting career, “I just saw too much of me in the film, and you start believing what people say. I was like, ‘No, no, no, people can’t see me in a film, they won’t watch the film, it’s a disaster. This is over, my life is over.’ I was like, ‘I am packing my bags, and I am going to find a new career’.
To her surprise, Namastey London opened with a tremendous response, and it was a commercial success. “That was really nice, it was really important for me because I think it did change people’s perception. It was the first time I got so many calls even from the industry, from directors saying, ‘I think you did pretty well in the movie’, Katrina Kaif said.
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