'An Action Hero is a genre breaker film for me'

Mumbai: Ayushmann Khurrana, whose upcoming feature 'An Action Hero' is different from his 'staple genre of social comedy', hopes the audience accepts him in this new space. Billed as a slick actioner with an offbeat satirical sense of humour, the film follows an artist's journey both in front and behind the lens.

Khurrana plays Manav, an action hero who runs for his life as Bhura Solanki (Jaideep Ahlawat) wants to avenge the mysterious death of his brother.

The actor, known for films like 'Shubh Mangal Saavdhan', 'Badhaai Ho' and 'Dream Girl', said 'An Action Hero' is possibly his first film without a social message.

"It's a genre breaker for me. It's different from my staple genre of social comedy and there's no message in it. There is pure thrill. It's a roller coaster ride," the actor said.

He added, "This film is about an extraordinary man in an ordinary situation. The emotion of revenge is an ordinary thing, but if a superstar happens to be in that ordinary situation, how he deals with it is what the story is about."

'Pataal Lok' star Ahlawat said he loved the script of the film.

"You'll not be able to say who is a hero or villain. Everyone has their own reason for doing things. I never thought of the character as a villain because he has strong reasons behind Ayushmann," he added.

The film is directed by Anirudh Iyer, who previously served as an assistant director on Aanand L Rai's 'Tanu Weds Manu Returns' and 'Zero'. Neeraj Yadav has penned the screenplay.

Iyer said the team didn't approach 'An Action Hero' just as an actioner as the story has many layers.

"It's a lot more than an action film. There is action, thriller and humour. The situation is such that Khurrana ends up doing the action," the director said.

Rai, who is producing the film via his 'Colour Yellow Production', said the film looks at the conflict between two strong men.

"When the script was ready, we realised it was not an action film, so we thought we should first ask Ayushmann, as he likes different kinds of subjects," Rai said.