Actor Kartik Aaryan has been ruling the box office ever since his debut film, however, his run was interrupted in the year 2020 by the critical and commercial disappointment, Love Aaj Kal. The romantic drama helmed by Imtiaz Ali also starred Sara Ali Khan and was a standalone sequel to Imtiaz’s 2009 hit film by the same name. 
In a recent interview with Bombay Times, Kartik was asked if he wants to shed his ‘lover boy image’ with his next film Dhamaka to which he said, “The film is going to be a pleasant surprise for everyone. Yes, it’s a thriller, but it’s so much more. It keeps you on the edge throughout and talks about so many relevant things that are going on in our society right now. However, I’m never shedding the lover boy image. It’s a privilege that doesn’t trouble me at all. My favourite lover boy is still Shah Rukh Khan and so is India’s.”

Kartik also spoke about Love Aaj Kal’s box office performance and said that the experience of working with Imtiaz lived up to his high expectations. He said, “I don’t think I had to ‘handle’ anything. When I was offered Love Aaj Kal, I was most excited about the process of working on an Imtiaz Ali love story. The process completely lived up to my imagination.”
Kartik further added, “I have learned so much from being on Imtiaz sir’s set, and the energy was on another level. It has given me so much as an actor that I genuinely never bothered about the outcome. A great box office performance would have been nice, but a below-average one doesn’t bother me at all. At least not yet. Plus, the fact that my performance was so appreciated, especially by my favourite filmmakers, is more than enough for me.”

On the work front, Kartik will star in Ram Madhvani’s thriller Dhamaka and also appear in sequels to Bhool Bhulaiyaa and Dostana.