He is tailor-made for this industry. After all, he has the Kapoor blood running in his veins. Practically not a single prodigy of this first film family has been able to resist the lure of the lights-camera-action world. Hence, when Ranbir Kapoor set foot into the industry with SAAWARIYA, it didn't surprise anyone. Unfortunately, the film didn't do well. But that didn’t stop him from walking away with both the applause and the awards. Two years later he is the most sought-after young lad, especially amongst big banners, and of course Ranbir is "loving it", he tells me as we walk towards his vanity van. Life has been pretty hectic for him; he is working around the clock barely managing to grab two hours of sleep. Yet there is no sign of fatigue on his handsome face. "You know, I have always dreamt of being an actor, being a part of movies, and today I'm a part of all this. I'm getting to work with such good directors, play such interesting characters, work with such amazing co-stars… So I couldn't be complaining. I'm 26 years old and I'm very happy so far with what I have achieved in my life. Of course, I have a long, long way to go before I achieve my goal!" he gushes as he makes place for me to settle down in his cluttered van. Now that he mentions his goal, I'm curious to know what he aims for… “My goal, well, I want to be the biggest actor not only in India but in the world. I want to be the best director, the best actor, the best producer - everything related to movies, of course. And, of course, I want to have a happy life also; you know, get married, have kids, keep my parents happy so that I have a good, whole-heartedly fulfilled life.” For a 26-year-old, he sounds pretty sorted… Totally unlike his character in WAKE UP SID. "Hmmm," he agrees and continues, "WAKE UP SID is a coming of age film. It’s directed by this really talented young guy Ayan Mukerji. It’s a really cool film, about waking up to love, waking up to life, waking up to relationships, waking up to your responsibilities in life. It's about this young, lazy Bombay slacker boy, who has just finished college and is suddenly bombarded by this question about what he wants to do with his future, whether he has made any plans… And all he wants to do is hang out with his friends, play his video games, watch movies, listen to music. During that period he has this chance encounter with a girl from Kolkata called Ayesha Banerjee, played by the immensely talented Konkona. It’s about how she is instrumental in his coming of age, about his falling in love with somebody and his realisation of his responsibilities and actually finding a goal in life. I think it's a cool film. I'm really excited about it." One can't miss the twinkle in his eyes as he speaks about his other forthcoming films too. By the year end, he would already have three big releases - following WAKE UP SID will be Raj Kumar Santoshi's AJAB PREM KI GAZAB KAHANI in November, and then Shimit Amin's ROCKET SINGH for Yash Raj in December. But, along with the excitement, it's also giving Ranbir the jitters. "I have this thing in my head that I'm going to be completely wiped out from this industry this year and I won't be able to do what I love most…I really get nightmares about it…" he admits, "but I think it’s a good fear. Because it kills the over-confidence in a person and drives you to work harder, at the same time keeping you grounded." For a person hailing from a family which has etched a name for itself in the industry to actually have a thought process like this and to believe in remaining grounded, is really commendable. His surname really increases the expectations from him, right? "Honestly, you know, expectations were never on my mind. I always wanted to be an actor and I was getting an opportunity to work with Sanjay Leela Bhansali in my first film. It was a great character to play and I was just excited to be an actor so I never really thought about expectations. I know that because I'm coming from a certain family there are going to be expectations, there are going to be comparisons…I see it more as a responsibility that I have. My family has been contributing to the film industry for 75 years and I have to carry this lineage forward and I have to do it in my own way and make a certain name for myself. Tomorrow I think my father himself would be proud if somebody says 'Hey, that’s Ranbir Kapoor's father!' even though he is such a big name himself. So I'm just here to work hard, do good work and I'm not really thinking about the future, about how it's going to be. But I do have certain goals, like I said before, and I truly hope that I achieve them and that the audiences continue liking me and watching me…" >>>>> 2