Half Girlfriend is not a frivolous rom-com

Actor Arjun Kapoor, who has bagged director Mohit Suri’s upcoming film Half Girlfriend, an adaptation of the eponymous novel of the same name written by author Chetan Bhagat, says the movie is a drama and not just a “frivolous” romantic comedy. “There is pathos and drama in Half Girlfriend. It’s not just a frivolous rom-com (romantic-comedy). It’s a drama. That film has a journey. It’s a romantic journey and for me that is very exciting,” said Arjun.

The 30-year-old actor, who also starred in the movie adaptation of Bhagat’s book 2 States: The Story of My Marriage titled 2 States, says he has never been a part of a film where “there is a rise and fall in love of a boy”.

“I have never done film where there is a rise and fall in love of a boy. If anybody has read the book, then they must be aware of the journey of Madhav Jha. In the film there is a time lapse (of about) seven-eight years between the beginning of the film and the end of the film,” said the Aurangzeb star. Arjun also shared that he likes the journey he gets to experience in Half Girlfriend.

“I have not done a film like this before,” he added. Asked if he read any of the adaptations, Arjun said: “I didn’t read 2 States and Chetan (Bhagat) knows that. I didn’t (read) because my director was very clear and he said that I don’t want you to read the book and get bogged down and get confused between the script and the book because you have read the script first. I did the same thing with Half Girlfriend.

“Chetan (Bhagat) sir is the co-producer and he’s on board. So the script and all is done through him eventually. Mohit Suri (the director of the film) gave me the script to read, which is a continuation of what Chetan had written in the novel...It’s a really nice adaptation of the book,” Arjun added. For now, he is loving how people are appreciating him as the host of Colors’ Khatron Ke Khiladi, and is looking forward to the April 1 release of Ki and Ka, which also stars actor Kareena Kapoor Khan.