Shyam’s Secret, the Swiss film for the promotion of which Ayush Mahesh Khedekar walked the red carpet at Cannes, needs to be kept a secret, at least for the time being and the child actor knows best.He wouldn’t part with any details about the film, but is happy blurting out all about his experience, the little trivia, the inability of sharing which weighs heavy on his little chest. He begins the interview with a confident ‘Hi’ and goes on chit-chatting about the little world to which he belongs and the big dreams that the film called Slumdog Millionaire has brought with it.
To begin with, Ayush can’t get over his Cannes hangover and is fiercely vocal about the same. “People knew me there. And when I walked the red carpet, they would be like, ‘Yo Ayush, yo Ayush’. The shutterbugs would also make a beeline to take my pictures. Bahut saare artistes bhi thhe wahan pe, bahut saare fancy kapdon mein.” So, did he take a special liking to any? The child actor says should he mention one, it has to be Eric Cantona, the larger-than-life former French footballer, who appeared in Cannes to promote the Ken Loach-directed movie, Looking for Eric, in which he plays himself. “He’s super cool,” Ayush quips.
The Slumdog experience is also hard to get over and though Ayush can’t talk about Shyam’s Secret, he’s happy talking about the movie that has made him a known face. “I would play games with Danny uncle and Loveleen aunt, who were really nice. But now, Danny uncle must be really busy, so we don’t get to talk much,” Ayush says like a grown up. And what about Freida aunt? Ayush correctly points out that the actor is Freida didi to him and not ‘aunt’. “Freida didi and Dev bhaiya dono hi mere achhe dost hai.”
Mention the famous scene where the youngest Jamal jumps into a pool of excreta, which was made out of chocolate and Ayush gets nostalgic, “Woh toh mere dummy ne kuda tha.” But wasn’t the thought of jumping into a pool of chocolates tempting? “Oh, that was butter chocolate. I don’t like that,” he explains.
Ayush, who aims at giving a shot to Bollywood as well apart from Hollywood ventures, wants to do a movie with his fave hero, Hrithik Roshan. Perhaps a Koi Mil Gaya or a Krrish like venture? “I haven’t thought about the kind of film it could be, but there has to be just the two of us.” Ask him about his fave heroine and the nine-year-old puts it diplomatically, “I like all of them.”
Movies apart, the child actor also places a lot of importance to education. He says it isn’t difficult managing both acting and studies at the same time and it also has to do a lot with two careers that he wants to pursue in future. “I want to be an actor and a scientist when I grow up.”
Now, that’s so sweet!
