“I fell in love with Kolkata when I promoted Masaan in Kolkata for one day. It was a rainy day and I remember it vividly. If given a chance, I will come and shoot for a film in Kolkata. I will not even look at the script. I love the architecture, the food and the people of the city. I want to come and explore the city” said Vicky Kaushal at the promotions of the film Bhoot Part One: The Haunted Ship in Kolkata.

Director Bhanu Pratap Singh also graced the occasion.

Speaking at the occasion, Vicky Kaushal said “I am scared of water and ghosts. So when I was offered the role from Dharma for this film, I was surprised. People usually associate Dharma films with romanticism, heroines in chiffon saris and so on. And here I was offered a film with ghosts. However after the shoot of the film, I am less scared of water now. But I am yet to overcome the fear of ghosts completely”.

The actor also added how during the first day of the shoot, he was so scared that he could hardly act. He then asked the director for some time so that he could go in deep water and actually understand about the situation. It helped him to calm down and he could act properly from the next day onward.

Bhanu Pratap Singh who is making his debut with the film highlighted on the fact that with this ghost film, he will be breaking all the stereotypes that one usually associates with horror films.

The director said “After I gave the script to Vicky, he didn’t message me or call me. So I thought that he will reject the offer. However he comes after a few days and sits down dramatically and then he says that he will do the film. And in the midst of all this, I was thinking why the drama man?”

The aesthetics and the geography of the film are new and this will appeal to the audience, felt the actor. The haunted ship concept reminded him of the film The Shining.

Vicky also narrated an incident where he got hurt during the shoot of the film. “I had to come out of the ship by opening the door. However unlike the doors in our homes where we have one lock, the door of the ship has three locks. I was not aware of that. So when I opened the door, the hinges gave away and I hurt myself. My co-actor thought I was improvising but when he came near me and saw that I was bleeding, he called for a doctor. The director was thinking why we were saying dialogues in the scene. So he came forward and when he saw that he took me to the hospital which was about an hour away. Luckily there was a plastic surgeon and he helped me out of the problem” said the actor.

When questioned what three wishes he will ask from Bhooter Raja if he were to meet him, the actor said “My first wish will be that I want everyone to come and watch the film on 21^st February. My second wish will be to shoot a film in Kolkata and thirdly I want to show the world to my mother”.

The film will be releasing on 21^st February.

Priyanka Dutta