Despite having famous parents, i.e. #PankajKapoor and #NeelimaAzeem, #ShahidKapoor started his career as a background dancer. He trained at the #ShiamakDavar’s academy and later started teaching there in his teens. Shahid got his break in a romantic comedy ‘#IshqVishk’ which was a sleeper hit and fetched him the Filmfare Award for Best Debut. Getting success at a young age, sometimes makes the person wander in different directions. Shahid Kapoor did quite a few films but he could not taste success as his debut film. But after grappling with failures he was given an opportunity by #SoorajBarjatya to play a social hero in ‘#Vivaah’. Then came #ImtiazAli’s #JabWeMet and then onwards there was no looking back for Shahid Kapoor. He featured in many successful films like ‘#Kaminey’, ‘#RRajkumar’, ‘#Haider’, ‘#UdtaPunjab’, ‘#Padmavat’ to name a few. Shahid Kapoor starrer ‘#KabirSingh’ was the biggest hit of his career. Now he is diversifying his focus and has acted in a web show ‘#Farzi’. This show is receiving huge response from the audience. So this Raj and DK directorial, definitely, will have ‘#Farzi2’. Shahid Kapoor interacted with our Sr Editor Keerti Kadam.
You opted for OTT. Was it a conscious decision?
After the humongous success of ‘Kabir Singh’, director duo Raj and DK had approached me for a film, Farzi. It was a pre Covid period. I had liked their work and I was impressed with their ‘Family Man’. Mind you season 2 of it was yet come. So I categorically asked them whether they have any web show? They were surprised because my Kabir Singh was declared a blockbuster and despite that I was asking them for an OTT show, was too much for them. Frankly, I watch a lot of foreign shows on OTT. I felt that this platform allows your relationship with audience to grow wider. Also it allows an actor to work meticulously and in detail on the character. Because some subjects can not be told effectively in two or two and half hours. We thought that Farzi’s script will not get full justice if we make a film, so we decided to convert it into a web show. We thought that counterfeiting, which is world’s second largest profession after prostitution, could be shown in detail. Because a common man doesn’t know much about forged notes.
Usually web shows demand more time. Were there any date issues?
What date issues? I never have date issues. I have two kids (laughs). Frankly I do not commit much in the future. I take limited work and work on it meticulously. If you have 4-5 films on hand then this issue surfaces. Also the changing scenario too could be detrimental to your future projects. The shoot days differ from project to project and as per the requirement of the project. I completed Haider in 50 days, Padmavat took 250 days, Jab We Met was shot in 70 days. So I have no qualms for allotting the required dates for a particular project. Yes, I know, web shows require more time than films. My work in Farzi was completed in 100 days and the entire series was shot in 130 days. But in a web show one can go into finer points of the subjects. I was unaware of so many things about counterfeit notes before I started doing this show. Similarly a common man too is heedless to these things. But I never have dates problem (smiles).
I like to do fresh things. ‘Pipeline’ thing is dangerous sometimes. Covid has taught us many things. A film takes around one or one and a quarter year to complete. And if you have 4-5 films on hand then it’s difficult to backtrack. There is a possibility of change of scenario by the time you start shooting other films. Relevance you thought while signing might get vanished. Many films got stuck in Covid and now all of them are releasing and the film industry is paying the price for it as movies are not running as expected. Maybe retrenching will help. As far as I am concerned, I choose to work at my own speed.
You do not seem to be affected by success or failure. How do you look at it?
See, being a sorted actor or a balanced person comes with experience. I have learnt everything through my experience. I am a self made person. No one has given me a platform nor I had a mentor. Though my father was an actor, I had my share of struggle. My decisions have been my own and I have learnt from my mistakes that’s why I choose to work in a certain manner. I started working from the age of 16 and that’s why my decisions have been independent. I have been in the industry for 20 years now and I have seen both success and failure. I see a lot of young actors getting burnt out after a couple of flops. In one month I have experienced my three film being tanked, and all of them had big female stars. Success or a failure of a movie is not in my hands. What is in my hands is hard work and to make better choices. But our job is extremely unpredictable. I should be able to enjoy my work because for success and failure a lot of other things are involved in it.
In Farzi, there are stalwarts like Vijay Sethupathi and Kay Kay Menon. How was it working with them?
Farzi has a great cast. I always wanted to work with Kay Kay (Menon) sir. Haider gave me that opportunity and I had a great time working alongside him. I used to be happy in a scene with him even if I did not have a dialogue. Because acting is reacting. And if you are a secure actor then you are okay with lesser lines too in a scene. He is such a master craftsman. When we approached him for Farzi, Kay Kay sir did not have the dates. But we waited for 3-4 months as everyone thought that only Kay Kay can do justice to that role. We are lucky because he was available after a while. With Vijay (Sethupathi) sir, I do not have many scenes. Because both our tracks run parallel. I have seen his films and I feel that he is a pure artist and both of us want to work together again. He is a very spontaneous actor and that adds extra to the scene and your performance. I really enjoyed working with him. How can you forget Amol Palekar sir? He is a legend! He plays my Nanu and his character is the soul of the story, integrity of the show. Working around him was a huge lesson. I worked with Rashi Khanna for the first time and she has done a good job. Then there’s Bhuvan who plays Firoze, too, has done a fabulous job and I think he’ll rule viewer’s hearts.
Hindi film industry is going through a bad patch. Not many films have done well. What could be the reason?
Dynamics after Covid have changed. People’s expectations have gone up. Maybe they were exposed to a lot of stuff other than Bollywood and that they expect better work from all of us. In our industry about 10-15 faces represent the fraternity. So those people should pull up their socks. Films are not doing well in recent times so obviously better work is needed. The newer lot need to take the responsibility of doing better work. Even my generation should take the onus to offer better work by making quality choices. There’s no dearth of talent and collectively all should bring the film industry back on track. Frankly, a best player, too goes through a bad patch. So it’s a matter of time and we’ll bounce back.
All of you should talk of qualitative work and not only the success. You improve when you go through failure. I did not learn much from the success of ‘Kabir Singh’ but I learnt a lot from the failure of ‘Jersey’. It is good to keep asking questions. Maybe multiple delays hampered Jersey’s performance. Nevertheless that film is very close to my heart. In fact it is receiving a lot of praise after it was released on OTT. But everyone should be able to receive criticism better. Absorb it and try to improve. Earlier there was no platform for people to vent out their thoughts, now it’s available. So it is important to take things in your stride and be responsible about what you put out on social media. I take my friend’s views very seriously. One of my friends told me that earlier I used to be uptight but, I am a relaxed actor now. I’m okay with criticism. I do not swell by panegyrics and avoid sulking. Again Mira, my wife, and my brother Ishaan Khattar are my biggest critics. They give me an honest reaction. So be open to criticism without getting affected by it.
What is your fitness mantra?
I am a vegetarian, I do not ‘drink’ and I sleep on time. I mediate too. I avoid Bohemia. I dissociate from vices. Though it may sound boring I am proud of my life style. Your relationship with work is as long as it is with your people. You can’t be dispassionate with your work. You ought to give 100% all the time. You should be a better version of yourself. It’s a young people’s profession. So after, say 30-33, you are swimming against a tide. You can look young and being young at heart helps while performing. Use your experience in a manner in which it doesn’t sound heavy to others.
How do you keep yourself relatable and bring newness to your work?
I will quote ‘Leo DiCaprio’ here. He once said, “When I hear a script and I know how to play that character then I don’t take it up. But when while reading a script if I do not know how to play it and get scared whether I am able to do it or not, then I take it up.” So eventually when you are confident of doing a character at a reading stage it may look formulaic. But when you try something which is unknown it challenges you as a performer. Whether you are successful or a failure at it doesn’t matter. What matters is to avoid doing what you already know. It helps you to grow as a person.
You have done many south-remakes. Any offer from South?
Good question. But the answer is No, I haven’t received any offer to do a South film. I and Vijay Sethupathi discussed an important aspect here. North Indian audiences have accepted South actors and the process should reverse now. South Indian audiences too should shower love on North actors. See, in a bad phase, South films did better in North regions but not vice versa. So the things should change now and everybody for every place should be accepted by every audience. It will be for the betterment of the film industry on the whole.
