‘Some people tell me you’re playing hard to get. But I’m not. It’s the other way around.’
Photograph: Kind courtesy Kunal Kapoor/Instagram
Kunal Kapoor has been in the movie business for over two decades but his filmography remains rather low-key with a small number of projects happening every so often.
The actor was recently seen as a cop on hot pursuit in the Netflix heist drama Jewel Thief, which marks his return to the scene after four years.
“As an actor, you’re a vulnerable and helpless piece of the puzzle. There are so many factors that go into making a good film, and so many factors that go into you getting the kind of work you want to do,” Kunal tells Mayur Sanap/Rediff, explaining his absence.
What is Jewel Thief‘s Vikram Patel up to right now, do you think?
(Laughs) He is probably still chasing Saif somewhere in the world, and he is still five minutes behind him.
When a project like Jewel Thief comes to you, are you focused on your character and the story? Or do you think of it as a complete package?
It is obviously the complete package.
Firstly, the character was very attractive to me because I’ve never had a chance to play a character like that. It was a chance to do something new.
Secondly, I enjoy heist films. Some of my favourite films are heist films. I always wanted to do something in that genre.
Thirdly, the people that you’re working with, right? Who’s directing it? Who’s producing it? Who are the other actors that you’re working with?
This is one of the films that ticked the boxes.
IMAGE: Kunal Kapoor in Jewel Thief. Photograph: Kind courtesy Kunal Kapoor/Instagram
This project comes four years since your last outing The Empire. What’s the reason behind such a long break?
It’s been four years since my last project released but I started shooting for multiple things in 2023 itself.
I was away only from the movie set for two years, actually. People assume that because you’re not seen, you’re not connected to the industry, which is not true.
I’m constantly working on plays.
I’m doing workshops.
I’ve also got a writer’s room where I’m developing scripts that I really want to produce and act in.
I might have been out of the limelight but I was still deeply connected to the work. Whatever happens, I’m always connected to the movie industry.
Did you miss being on sets?
I always say that you become an actor because you want to be seen by the world, not hide from it.
You want to reach out to as many people as possible.
You want to be in the theatres, you want to be on television.
So it’s obviously wonderful to see yourself in a film that is going to reach out to a lot of people. Not only because of the scale of the film but also because it’s on a platform like Netflix, which means that it’s going across to people around the world.
IMAGE: Kunal Kapoor in The Empire.
You have been selective with your projects and have remained relatively away from the limelight. Was it by choice or you didn’t find good work?
No, it’s definitely not by choice. It’s more a lack of good scripts coming my way.
Some people tell me that you’re being choosy and playing hard to get. But I’m not.
It’s the other way around: The good roles are playing hard to get with me.
So yeah, I would love to do a lot more work because like I said, nobody becomes an actor to not be seen enough.
You become an actor so that you’re out there on screen, in people’s homes.
I’d like to see a lot more of myself out there.
Is keeping yourself relevant a task?
You realise over time that sometimes visibility trumps talent. This means that people might feel you’re talented but if you’re not visible to them, it’s possible that roles will not come your way.
So, it is an industry where visibility is very important.
You have to find a balance between doing work for visibility and doing work for artistic satisfaction.
A very big actor, I forget who, had said that the advice I give young actors is just be seen because even if you’re the biggest actor in the world, the moment you’re not seen for long enough, people start forgetting you. Visibility is very important.
But it’s a fine balance.
Are you going to do stuff that you don’t enjoy for visibility? No, I don’t want to be that actor.
IMAGE: Kunal Kapoor with his son. Photograph: Kind courtesy Kunal Kapoor/Instagram
Is there something you still find particularly challenging about your profession?
I think it’s the unpredictability. The thing with the profession is that nobody knows what is going to work and what is not.
There’s no formula.
What connects with the audience is something very mysterious, right? It is very unpredictable and that makes it exciting as well.
The other thing is that a lot of people assume that actors have a lot of control.
A few actors do, right on the top.
Otherwise, for actors, your career is in so many different hands… the writer who’s writing the script, the director who’s thinking of you for that particular part, the editor, the person who will shoot you in a particular way, the person who will give music to the film…
The music might be a hit or not.
Then someone’s going to release the film. The film might be great but might not find the right kind of release.
As an actor, you’re a vulnerable and helpless piece of the puzzle.
There are so many factors that go into making a good film, and so many factors that go into you getting the kind of work you want to do.
IMAGE: Kunal Kapoor, Jaideep Ahlawat, Nikita Dutta and Saif Ali Khan at the Jewel Thief launch. Photograph: Kind courtesy Kunal Kapoor/Instagram
Does it get overwhelming to keep up with it?
Firstly, you have to love the profession enough.
A lot of people don’t continue because when it gets difficult, they probably don’t love it enough to continue. They’re like why should I go through this kind of unpredictability or rejection or being constantly having my fate in the audience’s hands?
It can get difficult for some people but if you love it enough, there’s no question of what makes you keep going because you want to only do this.
For me, it was very clear that if I’m not getting the kind of scripts I have my heart in, then I develop the scripts that I have my heart in. That’s why I started a writer’s room.
It is a tough profession. But if you love it enough, you never question whether you should keep going or not.
Are these projects already in the pipeline? The ones that you have written yourself.
One of them might go into production this year.
The other two, hopefully, next year.
They are complete scripts and one of them is at an advanced stage of moving forward.
IMAGE: Kunal Kapoor and Huma Qureshi in Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana.
How did you get into writing?
I’ve been in the movie industry for the last 25 years and it’s my favourite place in the world. Nothing makes me happier.
When Rang De Basanti was being written, I was an assistant director with Rakyesh (Omprakash Mehra).
I first read the story as an assistant director, then became an actor.
I think the one thing that came very naturally to me was storytelling. It’s something I have always enjoyed.
I have written short stories right from the time I was very young.
The first time I had a chance to sort of develop a story into a film was with Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana.
I was deeply involved in the writing process of that film. It was enjoyable because it came from people that we had seen in our own lives, as opposed to the Punjab that was portrayed on screen.
It was gratifying to be able to see something that feels authentic to you, go from just writing to, you know, finally being a film.
In 2021, I started putting down all the stories that I wanted to develop into scripts. I started reaching out to writers that I wanted to work with.
I put a team of writers together and the idea was to develop stories that we are passionate about.
Speaking of Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana, Vicky Kaushal played the younger version of your character in that film. Have you guys met up after that film?
No, I haven’t had a chance to chat about it with him. That was his first film.
I’m very happy with the way his career has gone from there to now. It’s incredible to see his career graph. He’s an amazing actor.
Even then, I remember when we were shooting Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana, everybody on set was talking about what a wonderful actor he is even though he had a very small part in it.
It’s great to see him go from strength to strength.
IMAGE: Kunal Kapoor and Bipasha Basu in Lamhaa.
Does one’s career get affected when a show or film gets bad reviews?
Yeah, of course. I mean, not only for somebody like me, but even for the biggest actors.
If you have a film that doesn’t do well in the box office, it does affect your credibility.
How do you bounce back from there?
You know, it’s not like you’re thinking about, oh, now I have to bounce back. It’s just that you sort of dust yourself off and move on to the next thing.
I don’t think there’s any magic formula of how you move on.
What I do is I watch the film, try to understand if it’s worked, why it worked. If it hasn’t worked, why it didn’t work.
If people didn’t like my work, what is it that they didn’t like? Whether that is something I can work on.
I like to get feedback from people.
IMAGE: A scene from Rang De Basanti.
Looking back at the 25 years of your career, is there anything you could have done differently as an actor?
I could have done a lot more work, for sure.
The thing is, it’s very difficult to look back and say what is it that could have been different.
There’s so many things that sometimes come together and sometimes, don’t.
For instance, there have been films that I’ve been excited about and they’re being developed, so you don’t do work for about two years because you’re really want to do that film. And you wait for that firm to happen and sometimes, it doesn’t happen. So you have spent two years waiting for a film that didn’t happen, and you didn’t do other work in the process.
Or sometimes you do a film and it doesn’t get the right kind of release.
What you can do differently is very difficult to tell but I would have definitely liked to have done a lot more work.
IMAGE: Kunal Kapoor and Radhika Apte in Kaun Kitney Paani Mein.
Is there any role of yours that you think deserved more attention?
Well, there was a sweet film that I did called Kaun Kitney Paani Mein. It had Radhika Apte and is directed by Nila Madhab Panda.
It was a very, very small film but an entertaining, satirical look at a place where water becomes scarce.
It didn’t get the kind of release it should have, though a lot of people from the industry have seen it.
What’s next?
Vishwambhara is up for release in the next couple of months, starring Chiranjeevi sir.
Then there’s Ramayana (the Nitesh Tiwari directorial).
