For actors Jimi Mistry and Heather Graham, that’s easy.
Graham, whose varied credits include Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me and Boogie Nights teams up with British actor Mistry, best known for his role in the indie East Is East, to play two mismatched, would-be lovers in the new romantic comedy The Guru.
The film, which marries full-blown Bollywood musical numbers with a little inspiration from the movie musical Grease, centers on Ramu Gupta (Mistry), a young Indian dance teacher who arrives in New York City in pursuit of fame and fortune–only to wind up on the set of a porn movie, where he gets some much-needed guidance on porn “acting” from co-star Sharonna (Graham). However, good fortune can come from curious places. At a party held by a ditzy socialite (Marisa Tomei) one night, Ramu is mistaken for a spiritual healer, and after parrotting back Sharonna’s seemingly profound insights to the rapt guests, suddenly becomes an overnight celebrity sex guru. Ramu soon finds that he must choose between his newfound notoriety and his love for a woman who accepts him as he is–unconditionally.
Hollywood.com talked with Graham and Mistry about their special connection, what “Bollywood” really is and their best sexual advice.
The two of you seem to have an immediate rapport. Did you hit it off from the beginning?
Graham: We hated it each other right away.
Mistry: I took one look at her and I actually threatened to walk out.
Graham: I remember when I first read with you, Jimi. I think we had to kiss in our first audition, didn’t we?
Mistry: Yep, the first time we met, we kissed.
Graham: Everyone one knew they wanted Jimi but there was this other guy from India, a former Mr. Universe, who was up for that part. Remember?
Mistry: Mr. India. That was his name. Big guy, lots of muscles.
Graham: But then Jimi got the part.
There’s that sweet, unassuming scene between the two of you when you’re singing the Billy Joel song “Just The Way You Are” to each other. You guys really sell it.
Mistry: You know, it’s amazing. I’ve been traveling around with this film for a while, in Europe and now America. Europeans always fare differently than Americans but everyone has said they love that scene. Which is great, because it’s a great scene.
Graham: It’s a classic song, one you never get tired of listening to. It’s got a beautiful sentiment behind it. When I read the script that was one of the scenes that grabbed me the most. I really wanted to do it.
The Guru is already a hit in England. Maybe its that it does something a little different with the romantic comedy genre, sort of twists the usual fare.
Graham: I like that it follows in some ways the traditional romantic comedy format but in other ways, it’s totally different. I like that it’s a movie I’ve never seen before.
Mistry: You think you know what’s going on, then we sing and dance and it’s like, “Whoa!” During the filming, some were calling the movie a bit clichéd, but Daisy said, “This is the whole point!” We keep taking you out of what’s going on to say we are in on the joke and then go back in again. That’s what is so good about the movie.
One of the themes of The Guru is how America’s elite tends to glom onto the latest “thing,” in this case a guru. Think the rich are a little confused?
Graham: They are but I think the intent to glom onto a new thing comes from a good place. Wanting to grow or learn more or be happier comes from a good place. It’s just funny that other people want to take advantage of that emptiness. They come in and say, “I can fill it.” But at the same time, what [Jimi‘s character Ramu] is saying to these people is not so bad. It helps them. So I guess it’s working in this case.
Mistry: The film is definitely commenting on a certain section of American society who have preconceived ideas about people who are not from America. I love America and Americans but there are those people out there who say, “Oh, he’s from India. He eats all those hot curries and things.” They don’t have a perception of what’s going on east of New York.
Graham: This movie also shows that people aren’t what they seem and how frustrating it is to come here from another country, wanting the same opportunities and thinking you are going to get them, but you really don’t.
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Can you relate to your characters?
Graham: I think as an actor, anyone can identify with Jimi‘s character, coming here and trying to make it in show business. And I can identify with my character because she’s a person whose afraid she can’t be accepted for who she is so she has to make up this whole other personality. I think Marisa‘s character wants to believe someone else has the answers and not look towards herself and realize she already has all the answers.
How is the whole promotional thing going?
Graham: It’s funny, as an actor, you aren’t really trained to do interviews. Especially television. [Director] Daisy [von Scherler Mayer] was like, “Just say this.” She was coaching me but it’s so hard. I told her, you should come out and do this.
Mistry: You’re not taught how to do interviews at acting school.
Graham: Or how to tell a funny story on The Tonight Show.
Who is easier, Jay Leno or David Letterman?
Graham: I used to have a huge crush on David Letterman. I thought he was yummy and so funny. But they’re both good. As an actor, you want to appear on both shows.
Heather, the porn industry, so to speak, has been good to you. First, Boogie Nights, now The Guru…
Graham: I guess so. It’s made me my money. I’ve achieved some wisdom, I guess. And [in The Guru] I learned how to sing through my genitals. At first, I thought Daisy just meant metaphorically but then she said, “No, I really want you to do it.”
Mistry: The porn industry has been good to me as well, but I’ll talk to you about that later.
Jimi, how was it working with so many women?
Mistry: It was fantastic. Never done it before.
Graham: He got a lot of attention. A lot of flirtation.
Mistry: There was great understanding, from Daisy in particular. If our relationship hadn’t started off so well, I wouldn’t have gotten the job. Daisy was also obsessed with the way I looked. The first thing she did was take me to the dentist to make my teeth whiter. I had to have a trainer, had to get a tan. She wanted me to look like the right package. Now, if a bloke was directing this, he wouldn’t have cared. And on top of that, I got some great clothes.
Did either of you think your future would involve singing and dancing in a movie?
Graham: I used to dream about it as a kid. I would sit in my parents’ living room and play Sound of Music, West Side Story, Camelot, and pretend like I was all the characters. If there was a musical in my school, I would find out about it like a year in advance and rehearse for it. Like every night.
Mistry: I used to dance in front of the mirror with my antiperspirant. I wanted to be Michael Jackson. Now, I want to be like Justin Timberlake.
Was it big fun to do the musical numbers?
Graham: Doing the Indian dance number was so amazing. I mean, I’ve never done anything like that before. To be a part of this whole other cultural thing, the Bollywood experience, was just so cool.
What is “Bollywood” exactly?
Mistry: It’s Hollywood in Bombay, basically–they have a huge film industry there. India makes a hell of a lot of films.
Graham: Not that I’m an authority by any stretch of the imagination, but there’s a few different types of Bollywood films that I saw when doing some research. There’s the traditional ones, with traditional Indian musical and saris and then there’s the Grease kind, where everyone is dressed in ’50s clothes–guys in satin shirts and girls in poodle skirts.
Mistry: It’s about having a lot of fun, about silliness. Slightly over-the-top. Hopefully, The Guru will transcend it all.
OK, final question. What’s the best sexual advice you could give me?
Mistry: The Guru has one piece of advice: Lie back and think of India.
The Guru opens in theaters Jan. 31.
