Lasyapriya Sundaram (BOMBAY TIMES; January 4, 2018)

Kunaal Roy Kapur’s breakout performance in Delhi Belly (2011) catapulted him into the limelight. Soon after, the actor played significant roles in films like Nautanki Saala (2013), Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013) and Action Jackson (2014). Now, he is teaming up for the second time with Delhi Belly writer, Akshat Verma, who is making his directorial debut with Kaalakaandi. The dark comedy also stars Saif Ali Khan, Sobhita Dhulipala, Vijay Raaz and Deepak Dobriyal. In a candid chat with BT, Kunaal talks about how not being a big star is liberating for an actor as it allows him to take up a variety of roles, and how despite his family being a part of the industry, they don’t rely on each other professionally. Excerpts...

The roles you have essayed so far have been diverse, but you haven’t really limited your career for the lack of lead roles…
If you get an opportunity to choose roles, you should pick grey characters and not the heroic ones. It’s more interesting to watch grey characters on screen. However, sometimes, people might have difficulty in understanding that an actor is just playing a character and not endorsing bad behaviour. It happens mostly with superstars, who wield immense influence on their fans. In my case, I don’t need to worry about it because I am not at that level. I can play the villain, the lead or even a character role for that matter. In fact, that’s what’s liberating for an actor like me.

Your made your acting debut with a role in the television series, Just Mohabbat. Looking back, how would you gauge the way your career has evolved?
I never harboured any aspiration of a great career in acting. So, every role that I can sink my teeth into is a bonus for me. I hope that I have a long career. I know that there will be some standout performances and some crappy ones as well. Having said that, I am happy with the way things have shaped up so far. Not having a career in the movies would have been far worse.

There was a lot of brouhaha around the profanity-laden dialogues in Delhi Belly. Kaalakaandi also has a lot of cuss words being thrown around. Do you think it’s an intrinsic part of Akshat’s scripts?
Some people categorized Delhi Belly as a film which only has abusive language. Films reflect how people would respond in a given situation. Often, cuss words come out of our mouths in certain scenarios. Isn’t that what dialogue writing is all about? When cuss words are used, it’s scene and character-appropriate. As a writer, Akshat is just staying true to the situation. In the process, he is neither encouraging nor discouraging the use of bad language. In many of our films, the dialogues often ring untrue because they are catering to a family audience and so, cannot be true to reality. However, if you are making a film for an adult audience, the writer should be free to write the way that best conveys reality.

There were reports that the Censor Board wanted 72 cuts in the film...
I think Kaalakaandi was one of the last films that went into certification when Mr Pahlaj Nihalani was at the helm of affairs. We were in a hurry to release the film and so, we went to the Tribunal directly and got the certification.

Kaalakaandi is a dark comedy. It’s a genre that has not been explored here as much as in the West. Why do you think that’s the case?
There are many kinds of comedies that Indians don’t take to, like self-deprecating comedy or the comedy of discomfort. Also, I think we struggle with self-criticism. People laugh at stereotypes, but if the comedy is accusatory or critical, we get sensitive. In a dark comedy, you are laughing at an unfortunate event. If one were to make a joke out of death, it might not be acceptable to many. But with the younger audiences being exposed to a variety of content online, tastes are changing. Kaalakaandi is darker than Delhi Belly, but it’s not blue comedy.

Considering your two brothers (Siddharth Roy Kapur and Aditya Roy Kapur) and your sister-in-law (Vidya Balan) are all associated with films, would you call yourselves a bonafide film family?
I think so. Many people say, ‘Oh, now they have it easy’. What people don’t realise is that I have been part of this for close to 20 years. So, it hasn’t happened overnight. Vidya has had her own journey. She started working in films after doing commercials and TV. Thereon, she went from strength to strength. Aditya also started with television. Siddharth worked his way into films after doing corporate jobs like selling washing powder. We are proud to be working in the film industry in different capacities, but we don’t rely on each other professionally. Our family has not been in the movies for generations, but we found ourselves here and have now become a film family.