I went completely mad, crazy about 'Rock On!!': Shraddha Kapoor

Mumbai: Shraddha Kapoor is living a dream, having got the opportunity of singing all the songs featured on her in "Rock On!! 2", but the actress has revealed that many professional singers had auditioned for her part.

The upcoming sequel to the 2008 musical stars Shraddha as a budding singer. The actress recalls watching the first part in a theatre, after which she told her father that if a second installment were to be ever made, she would star in it.

When Shraddha got to know that "Rock On 2" was being planned, she immediately contacted the makers.

"I didn't even think twice, I called up Ritesh (Sidhwani, producer) and asked 'Is this true? Do you want to meet me for it?' He said, 'Yeah. We would love to meet you.' So that's how it happened. But there was just one thing and it was that the lead actress had to sing all her songs. I was happy since I have sung 'Galliyan' and all. But he said that this was going to be a different level of singing and they have been testing professional singers for the part," the 29-year-old actress said in an interview.

Shraddha gave a singing audition to the film's composer Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy. For the movie, the actress trained with singer-vocal coach Samantha Edwards and the actress said that the experience helped her with the role.

Post the audition, the actress met the film's director Shujaat Saudagar, who helped her understand the character through a series of questions.

"He asked me off-beat questions like 'How many school trips have you gone on? 'Have you ever gone back-packing alone? Lived alone?' I was wondering why was he asking me these questions. Then I realised, my character in the film essentially packs her bags and goes off somewhere. She is a loner in that sense. She does what her heart wants to do. He said that he wanted me to spend more time with myself, alone. I started putting a DND sign outside my door, so my family would not come. I used to sit with a dog, read a book and reduce going out with friends," Shraddha said.

"Rock On 2", also starring Farhan Akhtar, Arjun Rampal, Prachi Desai, Purab Kohli and Shashank Arora, releases on November 11.

The actress has mostly played the typical 'happy and bubbly' characters in her films but "Rock On 2" is a departure from those roles as she will be seen playing a person with a calm demeanour.

Shraddha said being softer than her usual self for the role was a challenge.

"Except for 'Aashiqui', be it 'Baaghi', 'ABCD 2', 'Ek Villain', the way the character spoke was slightly more animated, at a higher pitched voice also. It was challenging to be softer. In the film, I had to speak in a very calm and composed manner. On the set too, if I said a line in a loud way, my director would ask me to not be bubbly."

The first film was a hit and has a dedicated fan following even today after eight years. While Shraddha is nervous about the comparisons between the two films, she is also hoping that the sequel would able to emulate the success of the original.

"I nervous about it because people will naturally compare it. I hope people enjoy this film as much as they enjoyed the first one. I was one of the people who went completely mad, crazy about 'Rock On!!'. It will be good if people go mad about this one too," she said.