'Dum Laga Ke Haisha' taught me to choose content first, says Ayushmann Khurrana as film clocks 7 years

Actor Ayushmann Khurrana is celebrating the 7th anniversary of one of his critically and commercially hit films 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha' on Sunday.

National award winner Ayushmann Khurrana delivered a landmark performance of his career in the 2015 romantic movie 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha' (DLKH) which made a statement about the need for body positivity and told society to not colour people with stereotypes which become a hindrance for love to grow.

Marking the 7th anniversary of the film, the 37-year-old actor shared how 'DLKH' taught him the biggest lesson of his career.

Ayushmann said, "My journey in cinema has been filled with learnings and have been lucky enough to chance upon great mentors and incredible scripts. When I debuted with Vicky Donor, I was lucky to have found someone like Shoojit Sircar who guided me and shaped me as a performer and a hero."

"I became an overnight star and trust me, no one can prepare you for it! You do feel slightly lost when such an overwhelming moment arrives. I have to admit that I didn't know what hit me. I didn't know which films to choose and which ones to avoid. I didn't have a direction on how to handle my career," he added.

Ayushmann saw a lean patch after the stupendous success of his debut Hindi film 'Vicky Donor' but he "course-corrected" himself with 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha'.

Ayushmann said, "I made mistakes along the way. I told myself to pivot to focussing on doing what I came to the industry for - find compelling stories and be a part of the best content films being made by the most maverick directors. This is when Dum Laga Ke Haisha happened to me and I will be forever grateful to this film because it taught me the biggest lesson of my career - it told me to choose content first!"

He added, "The incredible reaction to Dum Laga Ke Haisha showed me that my path in the industry was to pick the best scripts, tell the most disruptive, engaging and entertaining stories and that success will follow! I haven't second-guessed myself ever since. I know that my destiny in cinema is to dish out films that audiences have no reference point of. I have single-mindedly tried to do just that."

In 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha', Ayushmann played Prem, a school dropout, who hesitantly marries an educated but overweight girl, Sandhya (Bhumi Pednekar). However, the two come closer when they take part in a race, which involves Prem carrying Sandhya on his back.

Ayushmann will be seen next in films like Anubhav Sinha's 'Anek', 'Doctor G' and Aanand L Rai produced 'Action Hero'.

( With inputs from ANI )