Manjusha Radhakrishnan, Chief Reporter
Gulf News tabloid!'s chief reporter on the last time she was up close and personal with Anushka Sharma
Call it divine co-incidence or fait accompli, but the last time I sat down with Anushka Sharma we were discussing love, infidelity and marriage.
It was a sit-down interview held in Dubai during the promotions for her romantic comedy, Jab Harry Met Sejal, along with Shah Rukh Khan in August. While the film wasn’t particularly memorable, my conversation with her left an impression.
The then-single Sharma, who got married on Monday to her cricketer boyfriend Virat Kohli, was remarkably different from Khan, the suave superstar who had a glib way with words. When asked about love, Sharma in sharp contrast chose her words carefully.
Unlike Khan, who told me that he believed was a purist who believed in ever-lasting love in real life, the twenty-something Sharma gave a relatively more pragmatic answer. She claimed she didn’t walk with blinkers when it came to the concept of ever-lasting love.
Are Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli a good match? Our Chief Cricket writer K. R. Nayar and tabloid! Chief Reporter Manjusha Radhakrishnan discuss the personalities behind the #Virushka couple.
“I believe everlasting love is possible, but there’s always transformations. The meaning of love between the couple changes with time. The secret is to accept those changes. Love keeps transforming itself with time and you have to be open to such transformations. Sometimes people want to hold on to the love they experienced at some phase and that doesn’t work,” said Sharma.
It made perfect sense because in this age of Tinder, speed-dating and instant gratification, the concept of love keeps evolving and Sharma seemed to be on the ball (pardon my cricketing pun). The self-made talent from a middle class Indian home rather than an acting dynasty seemed to be the embodiment of a modern day woman who didn’t shirk away from the grey areas of love.
Pics: Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma wedding |
During the same interview, she said that dishonesty was the biggest deal breaker when it came to relationships in her life. Now, although the conversation happened in the context of her film Jab Harry Met Sejal, her thoughts made perfect sense.
That’s the appeal behind Sharma. She’s fabulously no-nonsense and direct. There’s no second-guessing her moves because what you see is what you get with Sharma. I have met her several times in the last nine years and she has never ceased to be a thorough professional. She’s happy to talk films, but is clear that her personal life is her own business and isn’t going to be a fodder for gossip.
Sharma and cricketer Virat Kohli, who are now famously called Virushka, also paint a portrait of the wholesome modern-day couple. In the statement announcing their marriage sent out by Sharma’s team, they made sure that they underlined that she would resume work in Hindi films by mid-January.
At every interview, Sharma, who has her own production house, has always expressed her love for Hindi cinema. She’s one of those well-rounded individuals with no hang-ups. From my experience, they don’t make them like her often in Bollywood.
K.R. Nayar, Chief Reporter
Having closely followed Virat Kohli's career, Nayar shares his insight on the star cricketer
At a time when Virat Kohli’s marriage to Anushka Sharma is the talk of the town, it would be interesting to have a look at the personality of this star cricketer.
Having trailed him as a player from his junior cricket days, it is clear that Kohli is passionate about his choices. So having married Anushka after falling in love with her, he is likely to have the same passion in his marriage too.
Many wonder whether he has the temperament for a married life and whether he will be able to play a long innings in his marriage too. These doubts spring up because fans have seen his volatile traits on the field. But that is mainly due to an aggressive style of cricket these days.
In Australia, during the 2015 World Cup, he raised his voice on a journalist for allegedly writing about Anushka, and it turned out that it was the wrong journalist! Following the incident, coach Ravi Shastri and many seniors have talked to him on controlling his emotions. And after becoming captain, he seems more mature.
Kohli eat, drinks and sleeps cricket. He works very hard on his fitness and leads a very disciplined life where cricket comes first. He will now have to manage his time more carefully, finding time for Anuskha, though unfortunately the Board of Control for Cricket in India is unlikely to give much time to be away from cricket.
Kohli could well follow his idol Sachin Tendulkar who successfully maintained his married life despite his stardom. If Kohli is able to retain his passion and determination in his marriage as much as he has for cricket, it surely will be a happy wedded life for him.
