Rachana Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; April 28, 2019)

There’s something cool and pleasant about Karan Kapadia. He says that he’s a regular 25-year-old, who wanted to be an actor and it is was mere luck that he found an unconventional role to debut with. It took him eight years to become an actor after he decided to take the plunge. He’s been there, done that: learnt horse-riding, martial arts in Bangkok, riding a bike, acting workshops and assisted on film sets from the age of 15. “I wanted to be prepared to take on anything as part of my role,” says actress Dimple Kapadia’s nephew Karan, who will make his debut with Blank, where he plays a suicide bomber, who suffers a memory loss. Excerpts from a conversation with the debutant:

It’s somewhat strange that even though you are Dimple Kapadia’s nephew and Akshay Kumar’s brother-in-law, not everyone was aware of your acting aspirations…
Honestly, people still don’t know much about me (smiles). And that’s because I’ve led a very normal life, largely away from the spotlight. I did the Juhu routine – went to Jamnabai Narsee School and then to Mithibai College. My mother, Simple Kapadia (Dimple Kapadia’s sister), was a single parent, who raised me until I was about 11 with my grandmother. Eventually, when she fell sick, my aunt Dimple took over. The kids from film families usually have a circle of their own, but I led a life away from all of them. I didn’t have the chance to hang out with them, and I didn’t miss it either. In my friends’ circle, everyone is a professional like a chartered accountant, lawyer and doctor. The other fraternity kids have known each other for years, but all of this is new to me.

Given that my mother did some of her best work behind the scenes in the latter part of her career, I saw everything from a distance. I went to a few premieres but never tried too hard to socialise. I’ve led an aam zindagi so far. Maybe, with this film, things will change.

Your aunt Dimple, your brother-in-law, Akshay and your cousin Twinkle Khanna are all well connected. Wasn’t it hard to stay away from the limelight?
I have had a lot of anxiety issues while growing up. I wanted to act because it gives me a sense of accomplishment and I will stop acting the day I stop feeling it. I love being in front of the camera, but never in the spotlight. I was such an introvert that I couldn’t even tell my mother that I wanted to act while she was alive. I was never really tempted to break into the film circles until I felt I was ready to be an actor. Maybe, the fact that I had anxiety and suffered from lack of confidence never let me jump the gun. Today, I realise that acting is just 15 per cent of the job. There’s so much more that an actor has to do.

How involved has Akshay been with your professional decisions?
It was his idea that I should train in martial arts in Bangkok for six months. Akshay sir has never given me specific instructions, but he has his way of guiding me, and without that, I wouldn’t have been here. His advice has always been incredible. As a boy, being raised in a family full of women, he was the first male influence, which I value immensely. Even while growing up, I was a fan of his work. He doesn’t mollycoddle or hand-hold me, but I know that he has my best interest at heart. If he had to, he would have produced my first film or acted in it, or done both. He saw the rushes and decided to do a song for us, which speaks volumes. My family believes in supporting one another without spoon-feeding, because they have all led adventurous and struggle-laden lives, which taught them a great deal.

Is that why you chose an unconventional film like Blank to make your debut with?
This was the only thing offered to me, apart from another film, which I couldn’t do. I’m lucky that this movie has turned out fine. Apart from the fact that the film was intriguing, it was the lack of opportunities that made me take on this film. Honestly, I didn’t have the option of picking. This film came when I needed it. Jo mila, woh kiya. When this film came to me, I was in a phase where things were difficult, nothing was coming my way and the auditions were not working out. When Behzad Khambata (director) told me about this film, I was blown away.

Who was the first person to know you were doing this film?
My aunt! She was so excited. My aunt is my biggest fan; she just loves everything I do, including the most ridiculous short film that I have acted in. So, sometimes, I don’t trust her opinion, because I know that she will love everything. I can’t have been good at everything, right? (Laughs!) She and my sister (Twinkle) were particularly happy because they had seen my struggle, up, close and personal. My sister even asked me if I was sure about this film, as there were chances that it could become controversial. I told her, ‘Yeh nahi karun toh kya karun?’ Akshay sir had told me, ‘Kaam bada ho ya chota, you’re starting out, you should do it. Why are you even thinking? People will kill for this role.’ I just took the plunge.

Dimple Kapadia has a degree of irreverence, apart from being a supremely talented artiste. Have her personality traits rubbed off on you?
Yes, some of it has, because I was very young when I moved in with her. Initially, I was like my mother, who always called a spade a spade. But gradually, a lot of my aunt’s traits became my own. My mom was a lot like the way Twinkle is today. She was outspoken and a bit of a hot-head. My aunt is a lot calmer and it takes a lot to make her angry. Also, she is my best friend and I can talk to her about anything. She once jokingly told me that I should get laid if I wanted to get rid of the zits on my face. That’s the kind of equation we share. She and Twinkle have prepped me for my run in this film industry. Initially, when they told me that nothing will be easy and things will be hard to come by no matter who you are, I thought they didn’t support my idea of being an actor. Soon, I realised that they were right, and nothing ever comes by easily here.

Your co-star Sunny Deol and your aunt Dimple are close friends. Given their equation, was he paternal towards you? Also, your mother worked with him for a very long time…
I have been on his film set when I was a kid. My mother was his stylist. It was surreal to share screen space with him. He was the best thing that happened to Blank. His experience of 30 years has rubbed off on all of us. We’ve had to work very hard to match up to his standard. I don’t know if you can call it being paternal, but he was very caring and accommodating towards me. He’s not the laughing-joking type. As a newcomer, you need a seasoned actor who is patient with you when you ask for retakes. He was patient and didn’t get frazzled ever. On the contrary, he made sure that I was calm and I gave the shot just the way I should do it. He would have done this for anyone. Sunny sir is unlike his angry-man image. His advice to me was that I should not load my head with too many thoughts. I was very nervous shooting with him on the first day (which was an interrogation scene), in fact, I was more nervous than I was with Akshay sir. I had seen Sunny sir since my growing up years; the pressure was too much, coupled with nausea. Gradually, it became easier, but mere director ne pehle hi din, pehle scene mein rula diya.

You’re making your debut in a year which marks the entry of many promising new actors. What do you make of the competition?
It’s inevitable. The only way is to do my own thing, my way. There are such good films being made, but few promising actors. With more of us coming in, filmmakers will hopefully have more options. Healthy competition drives you and keeps you prepared. So, I welcome it. I’m not the plan A and plan B sort of a person. I only have Plan A. I don’t want to have a backup plan, which can make me complacent. Hereon, let’s see how things shape up for me.